Asia, Europe to seek wider business links

Asia, Europe to seek wider business links

SINGAPORE (AFP): About 500 corporate chiefs and government officials, including four heads of government, will meet here this week to debate ways of expanding economic links between Asia and Europe, meeting organizers said yesterday.

Officials of the World Economic Forum (WEF) based in Davos, Switzerland, which is organizing the Third Europe-East Asia Economic Summit, said the conference starting today would spell out concrete steps for closer European-Asian links.

Colette Mathur, director of the WEF, said that while Europe and Asia had established links with America, there was a feeling that Asia's links with Europe could be improved and expanded to benefit both regions.

"The Third Europe-East Asia Economic Summit is more important than our two previous meetings. Not only have we attracted greater attention but we will have increased participation of public figures and business leaders," Mathur said.

Among those who will address the three-day conference are Singapore Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Philippine President Fidel Ramos and Cambodia's First Prime Minister Norodom Ranariddh.

Officials who will attend the meeting include Italian Trade Minister Georgio Bernini, former French premier Raymond Barre, Malaysian Trade Minister Rafidah Aziz, Thai Deputy Premier Supachai Panitchpakdi and Belgium Commerce Minister Robert Urbain.

Indonesia will be represented by its Coordinating Minister for Industry and Trade Hartarto, China by Minister for the State Economic and Trade Commission Wang Zhongyu and Australia by its Minister for Industry, Science and Technology, Peter Cook.

WEF officials said participants will discuss ways of overcoming major differences and difficulties that businessmen face in forging closer links and issue an action plan at the end of the talks.

The WEF is an independent, non-profit foundation based in Switzerland and is committed to forging closer ties between political, business and academic leaders.