US business interest in Northern Ireland has held up in spite of the absence of an IRA ceasefire but any collapse of the all party talks would be a "very different scenario" according to a senior government official.

Mr William Ginsberg, an Assistant Secretary in the Department of Commerce, said the absence of a ceasefire did not threaten the viability" of the conference for trade and investment in Northern Ireland and the six Border counties, which is due to take place in Pittsburgh on October 6th-8th.

The confidence of the US business community in Northern Ireland is "based on the fact that the political parties are working for peace" but if the talks were to collapse, there would be "a significant change in the way that US business interests respond to opportunities in Northern Ireland and the Border counties", Mr Ginsberg said yesterday at a pre-conference briefing.

The US President, Mr Bill Clinton, in a statement said he was "excited about the prospects of the Pittsburgh conference and looked forward to hearing about its successes.

"By doing business with Northern Ireland, American firms have a unique opportunity to grow and create American jobs and, at the same time, serve the cause of peace," he said.

Mr Ginsberg said that, while the conference would not take place amid the "euphoria" which surrounded the White House investment conference in May 1995 when there was an IRA ceasefire "the environment remains good". The White House conference was "largely a political event" but in Pittsburgh the focus should be "business orientated" and the emphasis would be on "match making" or bringing smaller US and Irish firms together.

That was the message he had received when he led a trade mission to Ireland last June. Some 150 Irish firms and local authorities had expressed interest in the conference and over 400 US companies but not all of these would participate, Mr Ginsberg said.