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Prime Minister John Key moved into superpower territory at the Apec summit in the Peruvian capital of Lima, meeting US President George W Bush and China's President Hu Jintao.
President Bush congratulated Key on his election win, and President Hu invited him to visit China.
A spokesman for Key says the meetings during the leaders' retreat on Sunday were brief and it is possible more substantial discussions will take place before the summit ends late Monday.
Key is alongside prime ministers and presidents from 20 countries at the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit, where discussions are taking place against the backdrop of the international financial crisis and deteriorating economic conditions.
Those issues are central to Key's concerns about the impact a global recession will have on New Zealand's economy, and he formed his new government quickly so he could attend the summit.
So far he has held formal bilateral meetings with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria and Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
In a speech on Saturday to Apec's Business Advisory Council, also known as the CEO's summit, Key pulled no punches when he blamed banks and other financial institutions for plunging the world into crisis.
"We have seen an expansion of credit and leverage at levels that were so unprecedented and arguably so uncontrolled that they now threaten the very stability of the world's banking system," he said.
"There is no precedent for such a large and widespread leverage boom as we have experienced in recent years and hence little way of knowing how far the unwinding process may have to run."
Key said in many cases there had been a "recklessly complacent attitude to risk" and credit had become out of proportion to real economies.
But his main point was that free trade - Apec's founding principle - was the most important way to get out of the crisis.
"Now is most definitely not the time for any individual country to allow their worsening domestic economy to lead to a retreat from global trade and engagement," he said.
Key said if the World Trade Organisation's current round of negotiations to liberalise trade did not reach a successful conclusion, that would represent "nothing short of political failure".
President Bush has made the same plea, saying in a speech that free markets and trade is the most important way to achieve a "rebound" from falling productivity and increasing unemployment.
Apec member countries account for half the world's trade and nearly 60% of its gross domestic product.
The summit brings together the leaders of Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, China, Indonesia, Japan, Hong Kong, South Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Russia, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, the United States and Vietnam.
It is expected to issue a communique late Monday emphasising the need for a co-ordinated approach to solving the financial and economic crisis. Key is urging the leaders to make a stronger commitment to free trade when they issue their statement.
From Lima, Key is going to London where he will meet the Queen, Prime Minister Gordon Brown and other political leaders before coming home.
Key was also expected to formalise a working holiday visa deal with Peru in a one-on-one meeting with its president, Alan Garcia.
It is expected that it will allow young people to spend a year in Peru and work for short periods of time to support themselves, while they travel and get to know another culture and language.
Business backs agressive stance
Meanwhile, the business sector is backing Key's aggressive stance at Apec, ramping up the pressure for more effort to free up trade.
Key has taken the unusual step of naming Brazil, India and China as countries dragging the chain in trade talks.
Business New Zealand chief Phil O'Reilly agrees some nations are more up for the challenge than others.
He says Key is probably advocating for change in the way financial markets operate in the future.
O'Reilly says now is a good time to step forward and get on with the economic benefits free trade can bring.
He says trade liberalisation is a great way of getting people into real jobs, exporting to other nations.
Nevertheless, Apec has attracted some protest, with hundreds gathering outside the house of the US ambassador to Peru to decry the summit's neo-liberal agenda.
They say they see the conference as another way for multinational companies to enter Peru and take its resources, while giving very little back.
A National Business Review correspondent says police wore gas masks, and had shields and water cannons to ensure any demonstrations did not get out of hand.
