Businesspeople prepare for APEC regional forum

Prior to leaving for the Business Advisory Council meeting under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Bangkok next week, members of Taiwan's business delegation yesterday said that Taiwan hopes to help develop the region's emerging bond market.

"Taiwan hopes to be included in the executive meeting of East Asia-Pacific Central Banks' second and third issuances of bonds to raise capital from within the region," Wu Rong-i (吳榮義), president of the Taiwan Institute of Economic Research (台經院), said at a press conference yesterday.

Wu, also director-general of the Chinese-Taipei APEC Study Center based in Taipei, said Taiwan was excluded from the association's first issuance of US$1 billion in bonds because it was not a member.

But the nation hopes the association can allow Taiwan to matriculate as a full member and thus have a role in the initiative's future, he added.

Jeffrey Koo (辜濂松), chairman of Chinatrust Financial Holding Co (中信金控) and head of Taiwan's delegation of CEOs to APEC fully supported another initiative for establishing an Asian Bond Fund, which is designed to boost bond sales in the region, according to Wu.

Wu, moreover, said that Taiwan has endorsed an information-technology education project under the APEC framework in an effort to promote Taiwan's IT industry.

The industry plans to donate computers to schools throughout the region to enhance their computer literacy.

The CEO delegation headed by Koo also includes seven other members such as Inventec Co (英業達) vice chairman Sayling Wen (溫世仁), I-Mei Foods (義美) vice chairman Henry Kao (高志尚) and Taiwan Power Co (台電) chairman Lin Neng-pai (林能白).

In related news, Minister of Economic Affairs Lin Yi-fu (林義夫) left for Thailand yesterday to take part in a ministerial-level meeting of the APEC forum in Bangkok to be held on Friday and Saturday.

APEC, which began as an informal dialogue group in 1989, is now the world's largest trade-cooperation group. During the ministerial-level meeting, Lin is expected to hold bilateral talks with his counterparts from the 20 APEC member nations.

Talks will include topics such as the development of the knowledge-based economy, anti-terrorism cooperation, healthy and stable financial structures, the development of new micro-enterprises as well as small and medium-sized enterprises, and commitments to assisting developing countries.

The ministerial meeting is to lay the groundowrk for the 2003 APEC informal leadership summit, scheduled for Monday and Tuesday in Bangkok.

Lee Yuan-tse (李遠哲), president of Academia Sinica, will represent Taiwan at the summit meeting on behalf of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁).

During a high-profile meeting on national security held at the Presidential Office Tuesday night, Chen instructed Lee to demonstrate Taiwan's spirit of active participation in international affairs at the APEC informal leadership meeting.