Vice president José Alencar leaves for Moscow today at the head of a mission of 58 business leaders to participate in the II High-Level Brazil-Russia Commission. The objective of the commission is to expand bilateral trade relations.
“There is a lot of Brazil-Russian synergy and we must take advantage of it,” said Alencar.
The vice president also said the embargo on Brazilian meat will be discussed during the visit.
“Brazil is a huge country. It does not make sense to prohibit the importation of beef when there is a problem in one area. This is disinformation. We are capable of being the world’s biggest beef exporter. We have the technology and the natural resources to do that,” said Alencar.
After Moscow, Alencar heads to Romenia and Portugal where more Brazilian businessmen will join him. The vice president returns to Brazil on October 20.
Brazil expects to triple its modest share of the Russian market within three to four years. At the moment, a mere 2% of Russian imports come from Brazil.
The first step to reaching that goal was a trade show that took place in Moscow between September 24 and 28, featuring Brazilian footwear, clothing, perfumes and jewelry, besides cachaça, coffee and fruit juices.
Brazilian entertainers have also performed at the event. As part of the exhibition, the organizers offered to bring Russian journalists to Brazil to see the country and its products.
In the first half of this year, Brazilian exports to Russia rose 3% to US$ 690.2 million. The number of Brazilian firms exporting to Russia rose by 25% during that period.
Brazilian products with a good chance of acceptance in Russia, besides those mentioned above, are: beef, pork and poultry, cheeses, bananas and oranges, soybean oil, cacau and chocolate, tobacco, pharmaceuticals, tires, sanitary napkins, textiles, washing machines, telephone and telegraph equipment, and automobiles.
The Russian economy has been expanding strongly. It was up 7.3% in 2003, and estimates are that it will grow 6% this year. With a population of 144 million and a GDP of US$ 434.2 billion, the Russians imported US$ 74.5 billion worth of goods in 2003 (exporting US$135.2 billion).
Russia is Brazil’s 14th biggest trade partner.
Agência Brasil
Translator: Allen Bennett