Isaura Daniel*
São Paulo – Brazilian businessmen are going to start discussing, next Wednesday (23), forms to maintain Brazilian exports growing. Around 3,000 people will meet for a large plenary about the theme up to Friday (25) at Glória Hotel, in Rio de Janeiro, at the 25th National Foreign Trade Meeting (Enaex).
The main discussions will be about the Brazilian foreign trade policy. Brazilian exports reached US$ 96.4 billion last year, with growth of 32% over the previous year. This year they should reach US$ 117 billion. The great doubt of exporters, however, is regarding the performance for next year.
According to information supplied by the Brazilian Foreign Trade Association (AEB), which promotes the Enaex, the meeting will be an opportunity for dialogue between businessmen and the government. The Brazilian president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and the minister of Cities, Marcio Fortes de Almeida, are going to participate in the opening of the forum. The minister of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, Luiz Fernando Furlan, and the minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply, Roberto Rodrigues, will also take part in the talks.
There will also be representatives of the government of the state of São Paulo and other federal organizations, like the Brazilian Export Promotion Agency (Apex) and the Brazilian Development Bank (BNDES) at the meeting. According to information supplied by the AEB, the main bottlenecks to growth of exports will be discussed, among them current exchange rates, and the infrastructure deficiencies in the country. According to figures supplied by the AEB, last year, the Brazilian share of world trade was little over 1%.
The businessmen are going to deliver to the Brazilian Central Bank governor, Henrique Meirelles, who is going to participate in the closing ceremony of the meeting, a proposal for foreign trade reforms. The document was developed by various business organizations, like the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp) and the Foreign Trade Studies Centre Foundation (Funcex).
The debate, whose main theme will be "Foreign trade policy and economic opening: competitiveness as a permanent objective", will include some points, like the need to increase exports of services and greater added value products. "Without stopping expanding sales of other sectors," stated the president of the AEB, Benedicto Fonseca Moreira. Nowadays, according to the organization, 77% of Brazilian exports are commodities.
"It is always necessary to discuss new methodology for foreign trade in the fiscal, financial, tax and logistics points of view, and new tools for trade expansion. Foreign trade is very dynamic," stated the secretary general of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Michel Alaby. The organization president, Antonio Sarkis Jr., is going to participate in the Enaex opening ceremony.
The meeting will include a series of talks. Minister Furlan is going to address the future of Brazilian exports in a panel on Thursday morning. The secretary of Science, Technology and Economic Development of the state of São Paulo, João Carlos de Souza Meirelles, will address the matter of bureaucracy as a reduction to competitiveness, also on Thursday, and the executive secretary of the Ministry of Development, Ivan Ramalho, will cover financing mechanisms for export, on Friday.
Stands
Apart from the talks, there will be a space turned to institutions and companies, in which the Arab Brazilian Chamber Commerce will have a stand. According to the marketing vice president at the Chamber, Rubens Hannun, the space will serve as a source of information about the Arab countries, as a place for the improvement of relations with businessmen, as well as advertising opportunities and routes for export to the region. The Chamber stand will cover an area of 16 square metres.
Government organizations like the Bank of Brazil and the Apex, and private companies like aircraft maker Embraer, Itaú and Bradesco Banks, and mining company Vale do Rio Doce, will have stands at Glória Hotel. The objective, according to the AEB, is to show, at the space, the work of those who are already operating in foreign trade, and also the services offered by institutions and organizations in the area.
25th Enaex
From November 23rd to 25th, starting at 09:00 am
Glória Hotel, in Rio de Janeiro
Site: www.enaex.com.br
Further information: (+55 21) 2544-0048 or enaex@aeb.org.br
*Translated by Mark Ament
