Global trade, regional integration to dominate WEF's Asia summit<\/p>\n
Agence-France Presse, Singapore<\/p>\n
Global trade and regional integration will dominate a
\ngathering of 800 regional business leaders and politicians at
\nnext week's World Economic Forum (WEF) East Asia summit here, its
\norganisers said on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
WEF Asia director Frank-Jurgen Richter said the failure of the
\nWorld Trade Organization (WTO) talks in Cancun, Mexico, last
\nmonth would be high on the agenda in Singapore.<\/p>\n
\"Especially after Cancun there are many questions now,\"
\nRichter told reporters after releasing the program for the three-
\nday gathering that begins on Sunday.<\/p>\n
\"Should we go ahead with globalization? Is maybe Cancun a
\nsignal that globalization is coming to a stop? So what about the
\nAsian aspirations and wishes?\"<\/p>\n
Richter said the Cancun debacle, in which disagreement between
\nrich and poor nations led to a breakdown in negotiations on
\nimplanting globalization, had led to an immediate greater focus
\non bilateral and regional trade deals.<\/p>\n
He said the commitment shown by leaders at the Association of
\nSoutheast Asian Nations (ASEAN) annual summit in Bali this week
\nto regional trade co-operation augured well for the region in the
\nwake of the WTO failure.<\/p>\n
\"Asia's future is very positive, especially after what we
\nheard yesterday in Bali -- a new initiative for integration and
\nan integrated Asia,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"We see very strong growth engines in Asia. Not only China but
\nJapan, after 15 years of recession, and Southeast Asia.\"<\/p>\n
Richter said the WEF meeting would try to come up with
\npractical measures to further develop the commitments made at the
\nASEAN talks.<\/p>\n
\"We at our summit here in Singapore would like to test the
\nideas and would like to think about what can we do to implement
\nthis new Asian and ASEAN framework,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Jordan's King Abdullah II, Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen
\nand Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga are among the
\nheadline political leaders who will attend the WEF talks.<\/p>\n
Hun Sen and Singapore's Prime Minister, Goh Chok Tong, will
\ndeliver keynote addresses.<\/p>\n
Aside from globalization and economic integration, other
\nissues on the agenda include the readiness of Asia's businesses
\nto combat terrorism and other security threats, Asian currencies,
\nJapan's recovering economy and the economic prospects of South
\nAsia.<\/p>\n
Some of the business leaders listed to attend are
\nInternational Monetary Fund deputy managing director Shigemitsu
\nSugisaki, Visa International president Malcolm Williamson and JP
\nMorgan Chase president Andrew Crockett.<\/p>\n
Thomas Cook chairman Stefan Pichler, James Murdoch, the
\nchairman of the Star Group and son of global media baron Rupert
\nMurdoch, and Petronas chairman Hassan Marican will also
\nparticipate.<\/p>\n
The talks are sandwiched between the ASEAN summit and the
\nAsia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting on Oct. 20-21 in
\nThailand.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/global-trade-regional-integration-to-dominate-wefs-asia-summit-1447893297",
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