DEPUTY FIRST Minister Martin McGuinness believes this week's three-day US investment conference will succeed despite uncertainty in the global economy.
The event, planned to boost the private sector through foreign direct investment primarily from the US, brings together key US executives along with officials from the North's development agency, Invest NI, as well as the heads of the British and Irish Governments and the Stormont Executive.
Referring to the larger than expected numbers of senior US entrepreneurs due to arrive in Northern Ireland on Wednesday, Mr McGuinness said: "I think the fact that we're having such a very large turnout from the United States is a very clear indicator that people there are interested.
"Remember, whenever we set in train the whole process of having this conference the indications were there would be something like 30 to 40 senior executives coming here. That has now doubled - we're finding it quite difficult to cater for everybody who wants to come."
His comments reflect similar remarks by Enterprise Minister Nigel Dodds, who said the numbers attending "far exceeded" those initially expected, with representatives of more than 100 companies now due to visit.
Among them will be New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg and the city's comptroller Bill Thompson, who was behind last month's announcement of an Emerald Infrastructure Development Fund to boost US investment in the North.
In one of his first appointments as taoiseach, Brian Cowen will visit the conference, as will British prime minister Gordon Brown.
Mr Dodds accepted the true measure of its worth was not the number attending, but the longer-term investments flowing from it.
He singled out US special envoy Paula Dobriansky for her help in showcasing Northern Ireland through this week's conference.