São Paulo – The São Paulo Trade Association (ACSP) and the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex) are going to take Brazilian exporting companies to do business in Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, next year. The mission, which should include 40 exporting enterprises – popularly known as trading companies –, is scheduled for the second quarter of next year, according to information supplied by the manager of the ACSP Foreign Trade Department, Sidnei Docal.
Despite being known for its work in the area of trade, the São Paulo Trade Association has affiliated companies in all sectors, including services, an area that includes trading companies. In Dubai, business roundtables will be held with the attendance of guest importers – with sponsored travel expenses – not only from the Emirates, but also from Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Algeria, Morocco and Iran. The latter is the only non-Arab country invited for the roundtable, despite being located in the region and being Muslim.
The São Paulo Trade Association eventually organizes initiatives of this sort as part of its foreign trade actions. In September this year, a mission to South Africa was promoted, comprising trading companies and featuring guests from neighbouring countries. The mission remained in Johannesburg, the South African capital, for three days. In the first day, there were business meetings with importers from neighbouring countries; in the second day, meetings were held with importers from South Africa; and the third day was set aside for visits to possible trade partners.
Docal explains that trading companies will be on the mission because they are usually the ones that enable small Brazilian companies to export. The action held in partnership with the ACSP is part of the Apex’s Tradings from Brazil project, whose objective is to foster exports by trading companies. Although they are informally known as trading companies, the enterprises that will be on the mission are legally different from the former, which have higher revenues. In Brazil, there are only 200 trading companies per se, and approximately 5,000 of the smaller-sized, lower-revenue variety.
The mission to Dubai, as well as the project designed to aid trading companies’ exports, focuses on six sectors: food, beverages, building material, auto parts, cosmetics and textiles. Companies in all of those sectors will be taken to the Arab country. The Emirates were chosen as the target precisely because there is a market in the region for products in those industries, according to Docal. The participating companies will be selected by the ACSP.
According to Docal, the São Paulo Trade Association holds a series of foreign-trade oriented actions by means of one of its arms, the São Paulo Chamber of Commerce. The activities promoted range from receptions to visits by foreign delegations, business roundtables with Brazilian businessmen, issuing of certificates of origin, training to companies, promotion of certain industries and seminars, among other actions. Despite being based in the city of São Paulo, the organization has affiliated companies from across the country.
Contact:
Trading Companies Mission – Dubai
Date: 2nd Quarter of 2010
Promoted by: ACSP and Apex
Information: sdocal@acsp.com.br or (+55 11) 3244 3771
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
