From the Newsroom
São Paulo – Movelsul Brasil 2004, the largest international furniture fair in Latin America, started yesterday (8). Open to a large public, it brings together 430 exhibitors, from 14 Brazilian states, and will go on to Friday (12), at the Bento Gonçalves exhibition centre, in the city of Bento Gonçalves, Rio Grande do Sul state, southern Brazil.
During the opening ceremony of the event, state governor Germano Rigotto requested that federal authorities reduce export costs that, he says, have risen 35% in comparison to January 2002.
"We cannot export taxes. Rio Grande do Sul is the state that loses most revenues as export rises," pointed out Rigotto. Figures released by the state government show 4.7% growth in the state GDP (gross domestic product) and 2.7% growth in industrial production last year.
César Cini, president of Movelsul Brasil 2004, also mentioned the furniture sector export potential in his address at the opening of the fair. "Our industry is agile and capable of doubling export. In a stagnated year as was 2003, we managed to grow 20%. Now we must export our products and add value through design," he emphasized.
The executive stated that the main function of the event is to favour small Brazilian businesses, which normally do not have funds to travel around the country or internationally with the objective of getting in contact with the new tendencies in the sector.
And, even facing strong competition from other similar enterprises, the fair maintains its spirit of youth, renovation, and boldness. "Movelsul Brasil 2004 is proof that a leader, with determined objectives, rarely loses his place," he summarized.
Representing Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade minister Luiz Fernando Furlan, Production Development secretary Carlos Gastaldoni stated that the federal government is working on further incrementing domestic furniture production.
"The furniture sector is the one that showed greatest strength in the export growth in 2003. We expect to reach US$ 1 million in one or two years."
