By Teo Cheng Wee

WITH the global economy recovering, more of the world's small enterprises are looking to connect with partners in other countries to boost their business.

Noting the change, Second Finance Minister Lim Hwee Hua made a pitch for Singapore, saying it is a great place for entrepreneurs from around the world to connect with each other.

Mrs Lim highlighted the benefits of doing business here at yesterday's opening of the sixth Global Entrepolis @ Singapore (GES), an annual business networking event.

Singapore is a choice marketplace for collaborations because it is seamlessly integrated with the global market, she said.

It has signed comprehensive free trade agreements with China and India and is committed to a business-friendly environment, she added, in a message directed at companies eyeing post-crisis opportunities.

'Many companies that have weathered the storm are now looking to seize global opportunities,' said Mrs Lim.

The sense of optimism, she noted, is reflected in a recent Economic Intelligence Unit survey. It shows that by 2011, 70 per cent of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) expect to see more demand for their products and services, while 54 per cent expect revenue growth.

This year's GES, a key networking event on the local calendar, attracted 1,200 delegates from 700 companies and more than 30 countries.

It also had a new feature: the Forbes Asia 'Best Under A Billion' Award, for the top 200 companies in Asia with revenues below US$1 billion (S$1.4 billion).

The winners are chosen from among 24,000 listed companies. Five Singapore companies are on the winners list: engineering group Boustead Singapore, marine player Ezra Holdings, producer of train parts Midas Holdings, education group Raffles Education and health-care company Thomson Medical Centre.

This year's GES also gave participants the bonus of taking part in the Apec SME summit, which has a host of renowned speakers, leaders and business personalities.

The SME summit today will feature speakers such as Mr Jack Ma, founder of China's largest e-commerce company Alibaba Group, which runs services ranging from online retail to electronic payments.

Others include Mr Scott Davis, chief executive of UPS, the world's largest package delivery company, as well as actor-turned-philanthropist Jet Li, who has taken a break from acting to concentrate on his charity, One Foundation.

Founded two years ago, the foundation aims to address issues related to disaster relief, health and education.

This article was first published in The Straits Times.