APEC CEO Summit in Singapore Sees Record Turnout of APEC Leaders

Singapore, Nov 4, 2009 - (ACN Newswire) - The highly anticipated APEC CEO Summit next week will involve an over-subscribed 1,500 participants, who will be called upon to "lead the change" on the global stage. With participation of Leaders from the 21 APEC economies, it is the largest numberin attendance since the inception of the CEO Summit in 1996.

Taking the stage will be President Barack Obama of USA, President Hu Jintao of China, President Dmitry Medvedev of Russia, President Michelle Bachelet of Chile, Chief Executive Donald Tsang of Hong Kong, China, President Felipe Calderon of Mexico, Prime Minister John Key of New Zealand, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd of Australia, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of Singapore, Prime Minister Dato' Sri Najib Razak of Malaysia, Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva of Thailand, President Nguyen Minh Triet of Vietnam, President Lee Myung-Bak of Korea and Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama of Japan.

More industry headliners have also recently accepted their invitation to speak at the Summit. They are Mr Robert Zoellick, President of the World Bank; Mr Gary Locke, Secretary of Commerce of the US; Mr Jin Liqun, Chairman of Board of Supervisors of the China Investment Corporation; Mr Derek Williams, Executive Vice President of Oracle; Mr Dorjee Sun, CEO of Carbon Conservation; Mr Shoei Utsuda, Vice Chairman, Nippon Keidanren and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mitsui & Co., Ltd; as well as Mr Madhu Koneru, CEO of MEC Holdings. The full list of speakers and latest Summit programme isavailable at ceosummit.apec2009.sg

Participants Stress Urgency of Summit Agenda

This year's event agenda "Rebuilding the Global Economy: Crisis and Opportunity" resonates strongly with the speakers and participants.

"This has been anothertumultuous year for the Asia-Pacific region and the APEC CEO Summit in Singapore provides a timely occasion with an impressive gathering of world leaders to take stock and look ahead," Mr Stephen Green, Group Chairman, HSBC Holdings plc.

"The region remains remarkably robust in what have been very difficult times and, as we approach year-end, Asia-Pacific is the world's fastest growing regional economy. HSBC is therefore proud to support this Summit. Like APEC, we are strong advocates of free trade, and firm believers in the ability of open markets to lift populations out of poverty and into prosperity. In the aftermath of the financial and economic crisis, these principles will be more important than ever in driving global recovery." Mr Green will be delivering a luncheon address on 13 November titled, "Good Value: Reflections on the Global Financial Crisis and the Way Ahead".

Mr Peter Loscher, President and CEO of Siemens AG, will be speaking on "The Shape of Things to Come" the next day. He said: "Building a more sustainable world is a job that demands our full commitment and a strong focus on green technologies. The progress we're making on e-mobility can soon revolutionize transportation. And our pioneering advances inmedical technologies will help to bring affordable healthcare to the world's growing population. Siemens has always been a leader in developing solutions to the challenges confronting our world. The coming years will be an opportunity for us to onceagain demonstrate this leadership."

Others look forward to the discourse that will take place and the actions that will be taken as a result of the Summit.

"It has been an eventful year for the global economy, and an especially difficult one for the aviation industry. I am hopeful that the outcomes of the Summit will serve as the impetus for businesses to discover fresh opportunities amid the downturn, providing a much-needed injection of confidence for people to start travelling again more frequently," said Mr Huang Cheng Eng, Singapore Airlines' Executive Vice President, Marketing and the Regions.

Added Mr Hermann Ude, CEO, DHL Global Forwarding, Freight: "How swift, how sustained and how widespread the recovery will be highly influenced by this very congregation of top policymakers and business heads. The CEO Summitin Singapore presentsan excellentopportunity for political and business leaders to collaborate in pushinga growthand sustainability agenda forward."

SummitGives Wider Community a Voice in APEC

For the first time, the CEO Summit is enabling the voice of the wider community to be heard at the premier business event of the year next week. It has launched an online discussion forum, conducted a delegatesurvey and will be distilling the Summit proceedings for the APEC Leaders ahead of their meetings all in a bid to ensure that views from every sector are presented to the highest level of government and business.

To kick-start public debate on the hot topics that will be discussed at the CEO Summit, AsiaPacVoices (at asiapacvoices.com) has been launched. Moderated by the Singapore Institute of International Affairs (SIIA), the forum features op-ed pieces by prominent personalities and thought leaders to stimulate public discussion on the Summit agenda. Among the columnists are Dr Bjorn Lomborg, Director for the Copenhagen Consensus Center and author of "Cool it: The Skeptical Environmentalist's Guide to Global Warming"; Mr Peter Lscher, President and CEO of Siemens AG; and Mr Stephen King, HSBC's Group Chief Economist and Global Head of Economics and Asset Allocation Research.

During the CEO Summit, SIIA will also help chronicle and synthesize the viewpoints presented at the various sessions. A final report will be submitted to the APEC Leaders ahead of their deliberations.

In addition, the CEO Summit committee, working with its Knowledge Partner PricewaterhouseCoopers, has conducted a survey to find out the most pressing concerns Summit delegates have on the global financial crisis. More than 300 CEOs were asked for their views on the world economic outlook, monetary and fiscal stimulus, the role of the APEC economies in rebuilding the world's economy, and the priorities in international cooperation for the global economy. The results of this survey will be revealed at a press conference, on 12 November.

"PricewaterhouseCoopers is delighted to be the Knowledge Partner at the APEC CEO Summit. This important gathering could not be more timely. It comes just as the worldwide economy is showing signs of turning around. Unlike past recoveries, however, it is evident that this recovery will likely be led by emerging economies like those of China, India, Korea and Brazil. Our joint survey with APEC on "Rebuilding the Global Economy: Rebalance, Connectedness, Sustainability' will provide insight into how business leaders view the challenges of the years ahead," said Mr Dennis M. Nally, Chairman, PricewaterhouseCoopers International. Mr Nally is participating in a Summit dialogue session on 13 November addressing the topic, "Is the global crisis really over?".

Added Ms Chong Siak Ching, Chair of the APEC CEO Summit Organising Committee: "There is an urgency to come up with sustainable new business models, right here, right now, and to achieve this, the support of all stakeholders across the Asia Pacific is vital. This is why we have created these various channels for the wider community tosay their piece and have a bigger voice in effecting changes in their economies. APEC, together with the business community, has undeniably a critical role to play in leading the change and paving the way to sustaining recovery and re-balancing the economies of Asia-Pacific post-crisis."

The APEC CEO Summit is organised by the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Advisory Council (ABAC) Singapore and the Singapore Business Federation (SBF).


About APEC CEO Summit 2009

The APEC CEO Summit is the premier business event for the Asia Pacific. It brings together the world's most brilliant minds in business and government to address the opportunities in the current economic landscape, identify the direction of future tr and assess areas of collaboration.

Given the global economic challenges faced this year by APEC economies and the world, the APEC CEO Summit 2009 has chosen the theme: "Rebuilding the Global Economy: Crisis and Opportunity". To be held for the first time in Singapore, the event provides the perfect platform for top CEOs in the Asia Pacific region to hear from APEC Leaders and international thought and business leaders ways to address the present economic crisis and fashion a stronger post-crisis financial and economic architecture. For more information, visit http://ceosummit.apec2009.sg.

About APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC)

The APEC Business Advisory Council, or ABAC, was created by the APEC Economic Leaders in November1995 with the aim of providing advice to the APEC Economic Leaders on ways to achieve the Bogor Goals and other specific business sector priorities, and to provide the business perspective on specific areas of cooperation. ABAC provides an annual report to APEC Economic Leaders containing recommendations to improve the business and investment environment in the Asia-Pacific region, and outlining business views about priority regional issues. ABAC is also the only non-governmental organizationthat is on the official agenda of the APEC Economic Leader's Meeting.

Each economy nominates up to three members from the private sector to ABAC. These business leaders represent a wide range of industry sectors. Singapore's interests are represented by Mr Teng Theng Dar, CEO of Singapore Business Federation, Ms Chong Siak Ching, President and CEO of Ascendas Pte Ltd and Mr Tang Kin Fei, Group President and CEO of Sembcorp Industries Ltd.

The ABAC International Secretariat is based in Manila, Philippines. The Singapore Business Federation as the APEX business chamber in Singapore is the appointed national secretariat for ABAC Singapore.

About APEC

Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, or APEC, is the premier forum for facilitating economic growth, cooperation, trade and investment in the Asia-Pacific region.

APEC is the only inter-governmental grouping in the world operating on the basis of nonbinding commitments, open dialogue and equal respect for the views of all participants. Unlike the WTO or other multilateral trade bodies, APEC has no treaty obligations required of its participants. Decisions made within APEC are reached by consensus and commitments are undertaken on a voluntary basis.

APEC has 21 members - referred to as "Member Economies" - which account for approximately 40.5% of the world's population, approximately 54.2% of world GDP and about 43.7% of world trade. APEC's 21 Member Economies are Australia; Brunei Darussalam; Canada; Chile; People's Republic of China; Hong Kong, China; Indonesia; Japan; Republic of Korea; Malaysia; Mexico; New Zealand; Papua New Guinea; Peru; The Republic of the Philippines; The Russian Federation; Singapore; Chinese Taipei; Thailand; United States of America; Vietnam. For more information: www.apec.org.

Source: APEC

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