Mr Lee Yi Shyan at the 2nd APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC2) Opening Lunch

OPENING REMARKS BY MR LEE YI SHYAN, SENIOR MINISTER OF STATE FOR TRADE AND INDUSTRY AND NATIONAL DEVELOPMENT, AT THE 2ND APEC BUSINESS ADVISORY COUNCIL (ABAC2) OPENING LUNCH, WEDNESDAY, 3 APRIL 2013, 1300 HOURS, MARINA BAY SANDS CONVENTION CENTRE

Mr Wishnu Wardhana, Chairman, ABAC,

Mr Gautam Banerjee, Mr Ho Meng Kit, Mr Jackson Yap, ABAC Singapore Members,

Distinguished Guests,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Good afternoon to all of you. It is my pleasure to join you at the opening of the 2nd APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) Meeting. Let me extend a warm welcome to all of you, especially our overseas guests. This is the fourth time Singapore is hosting an ABAC meeting. The last one was in 2009, when we were the APEC chair. Singapore is honoured to host ABAC again this year.

The theme for APEC this year is “Resilient Asia-Pacific, Engine of Global Growth”. Economic resilience is especially pertinent in an era of compressed economic cycles, frequent and unpredictable external shocks. The silver lining though, is that the fundamentals of APEC economies remain robust. The 6.5 per cent growth forecast¹ for the region and the size of our combined economies² give us both the rewards and responsibility of being an engine of growth for the global economy.

As businesses operating in the world’s largest economic region, ABAC members should continually seek ways to expand and deepen our economic linkages. Regional economic integration at the government level is vital, as it provides the platform for more open trade and investments. Business to business interactions, on the other hand, taking the various forms of trade, investments, joint ventures, franchising and cross licensing of intellectual properties will create employment, innovations and wealth for the economy. Such activities will bring about real improvement in standards of living and the alleviation of poverty.

I therefore urge ABAC and its members to consider fully supporting and utilising the various evolving regional frameworks around us to further improve B-to-B connectivity. Let me highlight two significant developments in regional economic integration that will benefit APEC economies: the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP).

The RCEP aims to bring together ASEAN’s existing free trade agreements (FTA)s with Australia, New Zealand, Japan, China, India and South Korea, into a single comprehensive agreement. This 16-member RCEP is envisioned to be one of the largest FTAs in the world, that covers 3 billion people and makes up 1/3 of the world’s GDP.

Another development which is keenly followed is the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Singapore just hosted the 16th round of TPP negotiations, and we are pleased with the progress that was made.

The TPP is an ambitious agreement from the outset. It aims to be a high-quality trade agreement that provides members with comprehensive duty-free market access and reduced restrictions on services, investment and government procurement. It also seeks to reduce behind-the-border non-tariff trade barriers, as well as enhance regional connectivity by promoting consistency in regulation across member countries.

In particular, we hope that TPP would facilitate cross-border supply-chain development such that APEC economies could extend their reach beyond their own markets. Whether it is expansion into Asia, America or Latin America, TPP will open up new opportunities for businesses in the APEC economies.

Within APEC, we have improved market efficiency.  For instance, APEC economies have made serious efforts at tackling cross-border trade barriers. As a result, APEC economies have improved ease of doing business by 8.5%. Since 2009, trade times³ have been reduced by 7 per cent, and supply-chain uncertainty is now 4 per cent lower.⁴ These in turn help businesses venture overseas with confidence and certainty, and tap into growing opportunities in the APEC economies.

The active participation of companies in ABAC in terms of suggestions and feedback to governments has helped improve policy formulation. ABAC’s proactive role in championing free trade will continue to improve the dynamism and resilience of the APEC economies.

In conclusion, let me say that as the voice of enterprises, ABAC therefore has the unique ability to influence and lead many positive changes in the integration of APEC economies. Your continued leadership and partnership with APEC and with each other will bring about a more resilient and integrated economy and better lives for millions.

Let me wish you all a fruitful conference. Thank you.

¹   Source: 2013 Regional Economic Outlook – Asia and Pacific, International Monetary Fund.

²   Combined APEC GDP in 2011 is USD 38.7 trillion. Source: StatsAPEC.

³   The terms “trade times” refers to a tally of export times and import times.

⁴   Source: 2013 Interim Assessment for the Supply-chain Connectivity Framework Action Plan, report by APEC Policy Support Unit.