São Paulo – The Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) will sign this Friday (14), in São Paulo, four new agreements with sector organizations to promote Brazilian products abroad. One of them elected the Arab countries as priority markets in its strategy, with another ranking them as secondary markets. Three other agreements already in force will be renewed on the same occasion.

Press Release/Apex-Brasil

Igor Brandão, of Apex-Brasil: adjustment allowed the inclusion of more projects

Agreements will be signed with the National Association of Road Equipment Manufacturers (Anfir), the Brazilian Dairy Industry Association (Viva Lácteos), the Brazilian Association of Engineering Consultants (ABCE) and the Brazilian Electrical and Electronics Industry Association (Abinee). Agreements already in force with the Brazilian Association of Defense and Security Materials Industry (Abimde), the Brazilian Association of Companies of Components for Leather, Footwear and Manufactured Goods (Assintecal) and the Centre for the Brazilian Tanning Industry (CICB) will be renewed.

According to data from Apex-Brasil, investments for the seven projects will reach BRL 65.9 million (USD 18.99 million). From this total, BRL 44.8 million (USD 12.91 million) will be invested by Apex-Brasil, with the associations investing the remaining amount. The agency’s coordinator of sector projects, Igor Brandão, told ANBA that Apex-Brasil reviewed its agreements signed in the last two years and decided that those that called for 85% of investments from Apex-Brasil now will be reduced to 70%. “With this, it was possible to clear room in the budget for new sectors and that’s exactly what we are doing now”, said Brandão.

Through these promotion agreements, Apex-Brasil and the class associations conduct surveys and ask their members to identify target-markets, that is, those elected to receive trade promotion actions from the projects. The project to be signed with Viva Lácteos identifies as priority markets Algeria, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, United States, Angola and Russia.

According to data from Viva Lácteos, last year, exports of dairy products totaled USD 319 million. From this total, 10% were to Arab countries. Saudi Arabia was the second largest importer, with purchases of USD 12.7 million in condensed milk. The first, Venezuela, imported more than USD 238 million from the sector.

“With the support of Apex-Brasil, through participation in fairs and business matchmaking, a greater exposure of the Brazilian products to Arab is planned”, Viva Lácteos executive director Marcelo Martins told ANBA. Among the actions planned, participation in fairs, business matchmaking and prospection missions “always targeting an increase in exports”, he said.

Anfir, which gathers, among others, manufacturers of dump trucks, machinery and truck bodies, will focus on two Arab countries in its project with Apex-Brasil. Chile, Peru, Bolivia, Colombia and Angola are the priority markets. And the secondary targets are the United Arab Emirates, Algeria, Mexico and Argentina. According to estimations by Apex-Brasil, the 15 companies taking part in the initiative should export USD 50 million already in the current year.

In Brandão’s assessment, the fact that the United Arab Emirates and Algeria are the focus of two of the projects has to do with the potential of these countries and their relations with Brazil. Besides, he points out that these nations are considered “strategic” in the federal government’s National Export Plan.

“In the case of Algeria, it represents an important entry point to the African continent, in addition to being a market that shares similar features with the Brazilian market, which makes the internationalization mission easier for Brazilian companies. In turn, the United Arab Emirates represent an important hub in the Persian Gulf region and an entrance to more sophisticated markets within the same region. They are very attractive markets and priorities for many of the projects we have in the agency”, said Brandão.

From these new projects, those to be signed with ABCE and ABINEE don’t present Arab countries as priorities. Among the partnerships to be renewed, the one in force with Abimde has as targets countries in South America, Indonesia, Malaysia, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. Qatar is a secondary market in the project, as well as the United States, Pakistan, Germany, Angola and Venezuela. The programs Brazilian Leather, signed with CICB, and Footwear Components, signed with Assintecal, don’t have Arab countries as priorities.

Source:

Brazilian Arab News Agency, April 15, 2016