APEC

SME Fair Promotes Trade And Transition

Updated: 2010-07-02 15:11

Founded in 1989, the Pacific Economic Coopera¬tion (APEC) organization now has 21 members with a combined population of 2.7 billion people — 45 percent of the world total.

The opening ceremony attracts o􀃮cials and senior business executives from APEC member economies.

Its small and medium enterprise (SME) technol¬ogy conference and fair is among the most influential for member economies and is the largest APEC event held in China.

The economic output of APEC economies compris¬es 55 percent of the global total, while their combined trade accounts for 46 per¬cent of the world figure.

The most influential economic and trade forum for SMEs in APEC member economies, the fair was first held in Tokyo, followed by Yantai, China, the next year. Subsequent fairs — sponsored by China’s National Development and Reform Commission — were held in Qingdao from 2004 to 2008.

The fair this year in Fuzhou has hosted a dialog between SMEs and Fortune 500 companies, the third time the seminar has been held.

Corporate business leaders and the heads of SMEs exchanged opinions on topics such as localiza¬tion for multinationals, the transition of SMEs, industrialization of mod¬ern agriculture, technol¬ogy entrepreneurship, consumer markets and aspects of a low-carbon economy.

Traditional Chinese tea ceremony at APEC conference and fair underway in Fuzhou.