São Paulo – In September, the Federation of Industries of the State of Pernambuco (Fiesp), in northeast Brazil, is going to promote the 2nd International Importers Meeting, and on this edition it wants to bring buyers from Arab countries. "It is a little known, little tapped market here in the state," said the project manager of Fiepe, Patrícia Canuto Pessôa de Mello.
The federation wants to bring 15 buyers from seven different countries. To invite the Arabs, the Fiepe contacted the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce. According to Patrícia, the state of Pernambuco already exports sugar, chemicals, rubber shoes, granite and lobster to the Arab market. "We have no specific preference for any Arab country. The important thing is for the country to be able to establish lasting business partnerships," said the manager.
In addition to the Arab countries, the Fiepe has sent invitations to companies from Europe, Latin America, South Africa, Angola and China. The event will be geared towards food and beverages, textiles and clothing, metal processing, furniture and decoration, and civil construction industries.
The 1st International Importers Meeting was promoted by the Fiepe in 2008, and brought together 13 buyers from Switzerland, Senegal, the United States, Italy, Poland, Russia, Argentina and the Netherlands, as well as 110 Brazilian companies. The event generated a business volume of US$ 380,000.
According to Patrícia, all Brazilian enterprises are invited to participate in the business meetings due from the 21st to the 24th in Recife. "We believe that the majority of attending companies will be from Pernambuco and the Brazilian northeast as a whole, due to the logistical ease," said the manager. The Fiepe expects the event’s business volume to surpass that of the first edition by 30%.
From January until April, exports from Pernambuco totalled US$ 404.57 million, representing growth of 56.5% over the same period of last year. To the Arab countries, the state exported the equivalent of US$ 50.5 million in the first four months, representing growth of 54.7% using the same basis of comparison.
The importers brought to Brazil by the Fiepe, by means of the International Business Centre (CIN, in the Portuguese acronym), will have their tickets, lodging, meals and transport to the event paid by the federation.
Further information
International Business Centre – Fiepe
E-mail: euro@fiepe.org.br
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
