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SINGAPORE companies should look to the European Union (EU) for growth, the head of the European Commission's delegation to Singapore said at a forum yesterday.
'Even if we are in the midst of a global recession, we should not lose sight of new market opportunities,' said ambassador Holger Standertskjold. 'The fundamentals of both the European Union and Singapore economies are strong. What the EU has to offer Singaporean companies is the world's most lucrative market - a single market, where goods, services, people and capital move freely.'
Mr Standertskjold was speaking at an awards ceremony to honour companies on this year's Fastest Growing 50 (FG50) list. The companies are ranked according to their three-year compounded annual growth rate.
A look at the common characteristics of award winners over the past five years shows that overseas revenue is critical to quick growth, says DP Information Group, which compiles the FG50 rankings.
Among the 250 FG50 winners over the past five years, four out of five generated revenue beyond Singapore.
Yesterday's award ceremony had a focus on the EU, where there are still opportunities for Singapore companies, according to trade promotion agency IE Singapore. It has identified three sectors in the EU that can be lucrative for companies here.
First, IE Singapore is working to bring Singaporean food to the EU. 'Consumers from developed EU countries are well-travelled, exposed to different cultures and cuisines, and are looking for the next food-trend fad in their cities,' IE Singapore assistant chief executive Kathy Lai told a media briefing. 'We believe Singaporean cuisine and dishes will appeal to European palates, given our diverse mix of cultural influences, innovation in product development and dynamism of food flavours.'
There are also opportunities in the electronics and precision engineering sector, where Singapore component suppliers can offer high-quality products at competitive prices as European manufacturers face pressure to cut costs, Ms Lai said.
The final sector identified is the furniture industry. IE has been leading furniture companies to major exhibitions and trade fairs in Europe.
In 2008, the EU was Singapore's second-largest trading partner after Malaysia, with total trade exceeding $104 billion. Within the EU, Singapore's top trading partners were Germany, France, The Netherlands and the UK.
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