Marina Sarruf*
marina.sarruf@anba.com.br
São Paulo – The state of Santa Catarina wants to diversify its trade basket with Kuwait. This was one of the matters discussed yesterday (7), during the visit of the ambassador of Kuwait to Brazil, Waleed Al-Kandari, to the offices of the Federation of Industries of the State of Santa Catarina (Fiesc). The ambassador, who met with the vice president at the organisation, Glauco José Côrte, was accompanied by the secretary general at the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Michel Alaby.
Exports from the state to Kuwait totalled US$ 19.3 million from January to September, which resulted in an increase of 71% over the same period last year. However, according to Côrte, 70% of state exports to the Arab country are chicken. He said that Santa Catarina may supply Kuwait with other products, mainly in the sectors of metallurgy, furniture and fabrics, both for garments and for linens.
According to Alaby, one of the matters discussed was the success of the trade mission to the Gulf, in November last year, organised by the Fiesc and the Arab Brazilian Chamber. Some of the businessmen who participated in the mission are still in the process of closing deals. This is the case with Stone Control, which sells marble, granite and ceramic tiles, and should close a deal with a library in Kuwait to supply flooring.
Côrte also said that this year three companies from the state are going to participate in a delegation to the Gulf, organised by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex). They are: Docol Metais Sanitários, of bathroom metals, Gabriella Revestimentos Cerâmicos, a maker of ceramic tiles, and Global Gate, which produces stone and granite.
According to Alaby, the ambassador showed great interest in the industrial and tourist potential of the state. However, Al-Kandari said that to bring investment from Kuwait it is important for the state to have treaties for promotion and protection of investment and income tax should be negotiated, with legal instruments.
Still yesterday, the ambassador met with the governor of the state of Santa Catarina, Luiz Henrique da Silveira. They spoke about trade between the state and the Arab country and about the possibility of the governor’s visiting Kuwait and other countries in the Gulf next year. Silveira also recalled that the former governor of the state, Esperidião Amin, visited Kuwait in 2002, as part of an official trip that also included Egypt and Italy.
Today, the ambassador is gong to visit company Weg, a Brazilian multinational and the main producer of electric motors in Latin America, based in the city of Jaraguá do Sul. The company recently opened a branch in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, where it will operate in trade, distribution and technical assistance of products and systems in the countries of the Middle East and North Africa. Another company that Al-Kandari is going to visit is Electro Aço Altona, which has a smelting capacity of 1,400 iron products a month.
*Translated by Mark Ament
