São Paulo – The World Forum for Medicine (Medica), held in November in Germany, should generate US$ 32 million in business over the next 12 months for the 51 Brazilian companies that participated. The clients include buyers from Egypt, Lebanon, Sudan, Morocco, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
During the event, sales deals were closed with several countries, totalling US$ 5.2 million. According to information supplied by the Brazilian Association of the Industry of Medical, Dental, Hospital and Laboratory Articles and Equipment (Abimo), the companies made 3,500 contacts with buyers from 105 countries.
“This year the fair had a particular characteristic, a very strong presence of Arab buyers at the stand,” said the Marketing and Foreign Trade coordinator of company Fanem, Meire Jorge. According to her, exports by Fanem to the Arab market account for 25% to 30% of the company’s overall foreign sales. “It is a very important market to us, and we still have much work to do in the region,” she added.
Fanem, which is already present in nearly all of the Arab market, closed export orders at the fair with clients from Lebanon, Sudan and Tunisia. According to Meire, sales include incubators, phototherapy cradles and other types of cradle. At the event, the company launched a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit which, according to the coordinator, also attracted the interest of Arab buyers.
Another company that received Arab buyers at its stand was WEM, a manufacturer of electronic devices. “Arabs are always present at the Medica,” said Ana Bonfim, coordinator of the WEM Foreign Trade department. This was the company’s tenth time at the fair. According to her, sales to the Arab market are growing. Egypt, Tunisia, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Algeria and Morocco are already among WEM’s export targets.
In order to follow up with its business in the Middle East, the company received export orders at the Medica fair with clients from Egypt and Tunisia. The products to be shipped will include electronic scalpel, coagulators and accessories for electrosurgery.
According to Ana, the company’s distributor in Egypt has already given workshops and training on WEM products at the Cairo University. “We have had a distributor in Egypt for 5 years now,” said the coordinator.
According to information supplied by the Abimo, approximately 10 companies either closed deals at the Medica or are negotiating with Arab buyers. Aside from Fanem and WEM, companies GM Reis, Instramed, K.Takaoka, Hp Bioproteses, Olidef, Cmos Drake and IBF received Arab importers and are negotiating. At the fair, 40% of the deals closed were destined for Europe, 29% to Asia and 15% to Africa.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
