Apec leaders urged to level playing field for small exporters

BREAKING into a new market is always a challenge for SMEs, and it doesn't help if a government works in isolation and develops its own complex regulations that put additional strain on small businesses with limited resources.

Trade Minister of Australia Craig Emerson, when voicing his support for small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs), said that the Apec forum is all about levelling the playing field to make it easier for small business to conduct business across national borders.

Emerson, who arrived in Hawaii yesterday, spoke during the plenary session of the first day of the Asia-Pacific Business Syposium, where he highlighted Australia's support for trade liberalisation for the benefit of SMEs.

The Australian minister said that businesses that are small have to compete with bigger players that have more money and information.



"Small business owners with the drive to grow must have an understanding of potential new markets and being able to access that is fundamental to the business' success," he said at the Waikiki Beach Marriott Resort & Spa yesterday.

Emerson said that it's a lot harder for small companies to break into the export market compared to bigger businesses.

In Australia, he said, one in 50 small businesses exported their goods last year, as opposed to one in three medium-to-large businesses.

"We have been a strong supporter of Apec's trade facilitation and connectivity agenda, which boosts movement of goods and services in the region," he said.

He added that it would make it easier for SMEs to navigate the legal regulatory and technical requirement across member economies.

"Identifying overseas opportunities can be hard for the services sector, so Australia has announced an Apec Services Trade Requirements (Star) Database for the access of new markets," he added.

He also said that it was difficult if each country's government worked in isolation and developed its own set of regulations, which requires time and money to understand.

"In Australia, we are a single nation, but looking literally, we are up to eight different markets because of the eight different states and territories. Some areas are affecting businesses as they have different regulatory arrangements."

Emerson said that his government embarked on a reform programme across 27 different areas. Of these, the government has already reformed 13 areas, he said.

"We hope to have all completed before 2013 towards a seamless national economy," he said.

The minister added: "That's the whole purpose of this, Apec is working towards the same goal, a seamless regional economy."

He also praised the Trans-Pacific Partnership, saying that if 21 economies can trade freely with each other, it would be "highly laudable goal".

"However, we won't get there over night, next month or next year," he said.

During the question and answer session after the talk, Emerson also said that the establishment of a national broadband network would help in terms of overcoming geographical challenges.

"Majority of our business is in the (east)," he said, adding that having better technological connection would allow small businesses the ability to telecommute not only to cities, but to the world.

He also said that Australia would be supporting the United States' initiative on limiting tariffs on environmental goods and services to five per cent at Apec this week.

"Apec members know that we will back such a proposal and it's important to outline a lower carbon economy towards a clean energy future," he said.

However, he reminded that governments cannot sit around, but need to provide incentives.

"The magnificent thing about businesses whether large or small, is that they will respond to incentives. So it's the responsibility of governments to put an inventive in place," he said.

The Brunei Times