Published January 19, 2009
Obama stimulus plan holds potential for S'pore firms IE S'pore urges firms to look abroad as govts up spending
By CHUANG PECK MING
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(SINGAPORE) Incoming United States President Barack Obama will be seeking to spend US$1 trillion to kick-start the US economy. International Enterprise Singapore wants a cut of the spending for Singapore companies.
Chong Lit Cheong, IE Singapore's chief executive, told reporters last Friday that its offices in the US will be watching the new administration closely to flesh out more details of President Obama's stimulus package before his agency can spell out how and in what areas Singapore companies can benefit.
But he reckoned that a big chunk of the money in the package will be earmarked for building new infrastructure and shoring up existing ones - an area where Singapore companies have built a nice track record.
Markets virtually everywhere are in a slump - and global demand still has more room to fall. 'However, with governments worldwide boosting domestic demand spending to stimulate growth, this is an opportune time for Singapore companies to capitalise on opportunities abroad,' IE Singapore said in a press statement embargoed for release today.
Mr Chong said IE Singapore, the government's trade promotion arm which also doubles as the agency pushing Singapore companies to venture abroad, will be stepping up its efforts and provide more resources to help local companies go international and win projects.
So expect Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam to allocate more money in the Budget to help Singapore businesses expand overseas.
IE Singapore spent $769 million last year to assist 41,000 companies here to generate more than $11 billion in projected sales overseas. Among those the agency helped: Amtek Engineering, which started a manufacturing plant in Hanoi, Vietnam, and expects to rake in overseas sales of $20 million; Frasers Centrepoint, which secured a residential project in Suzhou Industrial Park in China; and Taihua Food Industries, which clinched a deal to contract pack sauces for Sam's Club, a Mexican company.
The number of companies on IE Singapore's 'help' list has grown by 68 per cent since 2006, while the value of support given to them rose 33 per cent.
IE Singapore said its assistance for companies in the coming months 'will be tailored towards helping them overcome challenges, including market access and capability development'.
'IE Singapore's existing programmes continue to be taken up by Singapore firms, indicating continued interest to venture abroad,' the agency said. It stressed that small and mid-sized enterprises would continue to benefit from IE Singapore's 'range of broad-based services'.
'In fact, these programmes are becoming even more relevant in times like these,'
it added.
IE Singapore will concentrate mainly on China, India, the Middle East. Vietnam, Latin America and Africa. It will also target international organisations, which are expected to offer some $150 billion worth of business projects yearly.
'Over the last three years, Singapore has secured less than 0.1 per cent of the pie,' IE Singapore said. 'These internationally financed projects constitute a potential new growth area of business opportunities for Singapore-based companies.'
IE Singapore and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently set up a technical cooperation fund worth $636,000.
'The fund will create mindshare within the EBRD's 30 countries of operation of Singapore's competencies and development experience in urban transport and related urban solutions,' IE Singapore said. 'It will facilitate Singapore players to diversify into Central Asia and Eastern Europe.'
Obama stimulus plan holds potential for S'pore firms IE S'pore urges firms to look abroad as govts up spending
By CHUANG PECK MING
Email this article
Print article
Feedback
(SINGAPORE) Incoming United States President Barack Obama will be seeking to spend US$1 trillion to kick-start the US economy. International Enterprise Singapore wants a cut of the spending for Singapore companies.
Chong Lit Cheong, IE Singapore's chief executive, told reporters last Friday that its offices in the US will be watching the new administration closely to flesh out more details of President Obama's stimulus package before his agency can spell out how and in what areas Singapore companies can benefit.
But he reckoned that a big chunk of the money in the package will be earmarked for building new infrastructure and shoring up existing ones - an area where Singapore companies have built a nice track record.
Markets virtually everywhere are in a slump - and global demand still has more room to fall. 'However, with governments worldwide boosting domestic demand spending to stimulate growth, this is an opportune time for Singapore companies to capitalise on opportunities abroad,' IE Singapore said in a press statement embargoed for release today.
Mr Chong said IE Singapore, the government's trade promotion arm which also doubles as the agency pushing Singapore companies to venture abroad, will be stepping up its efforts and provide more resources to help local companies go international and win projects.
So expect Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam to allocate more money in the Budget to help Singapore businesses expand overseas.
IE Singapore spent $769 million last year to assist 41,000 companies here to generate more than $11 billion in projected sales overseas. Among those the agency helped: Amtek Engineering, which started a manufacturing plant in Hanoi, Vietnam, and expects to rake in overseas sales of $20 million; Frasers Centrepoint, which secured a residential project in Suzhou Industrial Park in China; and Taihua Food Industries, which clinched a deal to contract pack sauces for Sam's Club, a Mexican company.
The number of companies on IE Singapore's 'help' list has grown by 68 per cent since 2006, while the value of support given to them rose 33 per cent.
IE Singapore said its assistance for companies in the coming months 'will be tailored towards helping them overcome challenges, including market access and capability development'.
'IE Singapore's existing programmes continue to be taken up by Singapore firms, indicating continued interest to venture abroad,' the agency said. It stressed that small and mid-sized enterprises would continue to benefit from IE Singapore's 'range of broad-based services'.
'In fact, these programmes are becoming even more relevant in times like these,'
it added.
IE Singapore will concentrate mainly on China, India, the Middle East. Vietnam, Latin America and Africa. It will also target international organisations, which are expected to offer some $150 billion worth of business projects yearly.
'Over the last three years, Singapore has secured less than 0.1 per cent of the pie,' IE Singapore said. 'These internationally financed projects constitute a potential new growth area of business opportunities for Singapore-based companies.'
IE Singapore and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) recently set up a technical cooperation fund worth $636,000.
'The fund will create mindshare within the EBRD's 30 countries of operation of Singapore's competencies and development experience in urban transport and related urban solutions,' IE Singapore said. 'It will facilitate Singapore players to diversify into Central Asia and Eastern Europe.'
