DUBAI, United Arab Emirates, April 14 /PRNewswire/ -- Platts, a leading energy and commodities information provider, will participate in the April 15-16 BusinessWeek Middle-East Asia Leadership Forum, a key event that promotes communication, forges links and establishes powerful partnerships between business leaders from the two regions. This year's Forum is entitled "The CEO Challenge: Sustaining Growth, Expanding the Boundaries" and is expected to draw some 400 participants from Asia and the Middle East.

Platts President Victoria Chu Pao will participate as a panelist in the opening day plenary session entitled, "Looking Ahead: Decoupling Debunked Drivers for Economic Expansion." The discussion will center on the links between the rapidly growing economies of China and India and the slowing economies of the United States and certain European nations. Ms. Pao will be joined by Standard & Poor's Chief Economist David Wyss and several executives in finance and other global industries.

Platts Middle East Editor Kate Dourian will moderate the April 15 panel entitled "The end of oil? Managing Demand, Developing Alternative Energy Sources," which includes Abu Dhabi National Energy Company CEO Peter Barker- Homek, Standard Chartered Bank Vice Chairman of Oil & Gas Martin Lovegrove, Sapphire Energy CEO Dr. Jason Pyle, and Ambassador Edward Djerejian, founding director of the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy, Rice University, United States.

This year's forum comes at a time when trade between the two regions is at an all-time high and the debate continues as to whether oil is peaking at just over $100 per barrel. Yearly trade between Dubai and China alone has reached $19.4 billion, which is up 47 percent in the last year. China is now the United Arab Emirate's second biggest trading partner. Producers of oil argue there is still enough oil around the globe to last another 100 years but many are not investing in new capacity beyond 2012. Executives will discuss how these and other issues will impact the regions and their businesses. Keynote speakers include United Arab Emirates Minister of Higher Education and Science Research Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al-Nahayan and Manchester City Football Club Chairman and former Prime Minister of Thailand Dr. Thaksin Shinawatra.

"This forum not only brings together the wealth of experience embodied within The McGraw-Hill Companies, it taps a full roster of luminaries from across academia, government and business, to discuss the increasing role that Middle-East and Asia play in the complex issues facing decision makers today," says Ms. Pao.

The Middle-East Asia Leadership Forum further builds on the 15 years of the Asia Leadership Forum, and on the inaugural Middle-East Asia Leadership Forum that took place for the first time in Dubai last year. The BusinessWeek Forum bring together key business executives, policymakers and political leaders to share views and insights on the challenges facing CEOs.

About BusinessWeek:

BusinessWeek is a global business media organization, providing insight and analysis to business professionals around the world. Founded in 1929 and published by the McGraw-Hill Companies, BusinessWeek magazine is the market leader, with more than 4.7 million readers each week in 140 countries. Local language editions include Chinese, Russian, Arabic, and Bahasa Indonesian. Launched in 1994, BusinessWeek.com is the pre-eminent provider of essential daily business news, information and services. Reaching 80% of U.S. households, BusinessWeek Weekend delivers important business, consumer, and financial news to television viewers every week.

About Platts:

Platts, a division of The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP), is a leading global provider of energy and commodities information. With nearly a century of business experience, Platts serves customers across more than 150 countries. Platts serves the oil, natural gas, electricity, emissions, nuclear power, coal, petrochemical, shipping, and metals markets from 17 offices worldwide. Platts' real-time news, pricing, analytical services and conferences help markets operate with transparency and efficiency. Traders, risk managers, analysts, and industry leaders depend upon Platts to help them make better trading and investment decisions. Additional information is available at http://www.platts.com.

About The McGraw-Hill Companies:

Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor's, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2007 were $6.8 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com.