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Business leaders give their perspective on Apec.

Warren Larsen,
Chief executive Dairy Board

The Dairy Board has already spread butter, some of its finest cheeses and a message of trade liberalisation at the Apec Trade Ministers' conference.

At this week's leaders' meeting, board chief executive Warren Larsen hopes to build on the earlier sponsorship.

"The key message is that we are supportive of any realistic approach to try to further improve trade liberalisation," he said.

"It is the single most important factor for us globally - access to markets."

The board is New Zealand's biggest export earner with sales expected to reach $4.8 billion this year. It employs 9600 people, mostly overseas, and exports more than 1.3 million tonnes of product to 148 countries and territories.

But only 6 per cent of the world's dairy product market is accessible, and much of that is controlled by tariffs - some as high as 300 per cent - and non-tariff trade barriers.

Mr Larsen, who has attended minor Apec meetings in the past, said this event's focus on Asia, combined with the upcoming World Trade Organisation round, meant he would have attended this conference wherever it was.

"I'm hopeful that some very positive things will come from it. I want to learn as much as I can about where this process is at," he said.

He hoped the meeting would allow him to fine-tune the board's strategy ahead of the WTO negotiations "both as an organisation operating globally, and in terms on what we might be able to contribute to New Zealand's approach to this round."

Mr Larsen also hoped to develop commercial contacts, particularly in critically important Asian markets, and especially China.

Sir Ron Carter

Executive chairman Beca Group

Engineer and long-time business leader Sir Ron Carter is used to looking outward, so it frustrates him that critics of the Apec conference do not see its long-term economic value to this country.

Our economic future, both Beca's and New Zealand's, depends on the ability to trade effectively and the key is to remember this is done by people, though they might be working in the framework of nations, organisations or companies, says Sir Ron, who is executive chairman of international engineering business Beca Group.

"In our business, friendships are the key to future business. Some of the Pacific Rim's most successful business persons are attending Apec in Auckland and there's no doubt that business friendships already formed, and to be formed at Apec, will lead to business deals in the future."

It joins leaders and it also leads, he says. Beca's Singapore office, which has 160 staff, is becoming a leader in paperless office business, putting it in an advantageous position in a country which has just revised its growth forecasts from a 0-2 per cent range to 4-5 per cent for the next year.

Sir Ron believes the Apec conference will produce significant contacts. Beca's strongest interests are in industrial investment and infrastructure, so countries such as China, India and Malaysia represent high-volume growth opportunities.

Apec helps these aspirations. "New Zealand is distinguishing itself by running this conference. I can't see why we're so reluctant to note that. The critics fail to see the importance of people meeting, even if it's only to discuss problems."

Neville Fielke

Chief executive Heinz Wattie

Curry sauce will be on Neville Fielke's mind this weekend when Apec CEO's summit kicks off this weekend.

The chief executive of Heinz Wattie Australasia said improved market access for value added products like processed food - which face high tariffs - would be Heinz Wattie's main focus during the summit, which begins on Friday.

"That's why this conference is important to me. One of the problems we have is the vastly different standards in place around the world for processed food. We make a curry sauce and export it to Japan, but because it contains meat, it runs into high tariffs. It's trying to get some simplicity that will allow freer flow of processed food.

"If we're able to remove some of these impediments we can grow business faster, we can move the New Zealand economy on further and create more jobs which is good for the country."

Mr Fielke said the company, which is an international food producer and famous for its ketchup, sauces and baked beans, would make the most of summit through networking and catching up on the latest in food labelling and technology, as well as encouraging discussion on tariffs for processed food.

In the past, Apec issues had focused around agricultural exports and trade, rather than added value products.

"We're sort of focusing on it from an opportunistic point of view, it's more of a strategic thing. I don't know if we see ourselves benefiting greatly, but the great thing is it gets us more connected with what's happening in the global food system."

Mr Fielke is on the summit's host CEO committee and has yet to find out who his guests will be.