Page 84 - AMEFT Journal 2021-2

ABCC to open offices in KSA and Egypt
Celebrating the second anniversary of its Dubai office, ABCC said that it is set to inaugurate two international offices in Saudi Arabia and Egypt, which will serve as additional outposts in the Arab countries.
The facilities, which will assist companies looking to partner with Brazilian firms and vice versa, will be equipped with faster technical support and address business requirements, concerns and issues of ABCC’s member companies, associates, and customers, kee- ping in mind their goals and strategies. The inter- national offices will also pave the way for a deeper knowledge of local markets including new develop- ments and trends as well as forging new partnerships in value-added segments such as innovation, techno- logy, and products.
Commenting on the announcement, Rubens Han- nun, President, Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, said, “This latest development will give our members a competitive edge and offer enormous economic be- nefits to the Brazilian and Arab markets. It will bolster trade activities among relevant parties as we remain committed to deliver solutions, through our offices in the Arab world, including cost-effective procedures and faster import-export processes. It is a milestone in our ongoing efforts to reinforce trade ties between Brazil and the Arab countries.”
The new offices will serve as a meeting point for Brazilian and Arab businessmen, representatives, and government officials to hold business meetings and events, among other functions.
MARKET & NEWS
Brazilian export to Arab region hits record
Latest figure from Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce (ABCC) says that Brazil’s exports to the Arab countries marked a trade surplus to USD 6.11 billion in 2020. The South American country’s exports to the bloc of Arab coun- tries generated USD 11.47 billion in revenue during the same year.
Up 16.2% from 2019, the USD 6.11 billion accounts for 12.2% of the USD 50 billion all-time record trade surplus witnessed by Brazil throughout the year. The ABCC report further showed that Brazilian sugar was the number one exported product to the Arab world last year, edging out poultry in terms of regional market share. The revenue from the commodity amounted to USD 2.87 billion, or 32.5% higher compared to 2019.
Sugar was followed by poultry (USD 1.99 billion), iron ore (USD 1.40 billion), maize (USD 1.12 billion), beef (USD 968.03 million), and soy (USD 323.1 million). The UAE (USD 2 billion), Saudi Arabia (USD 1.89 billion) and Egypt
(Source: ABCC)
Rubens Hannun, President of the Arab-Brazilian Chamber of Commerce
Arab countries remain to be one of Brazil’s leading international trade partners, only behind China and the United States.
(USD 1.75 billion) were the top three export de- stinations.
Rubens Hannun, Pre- sident, Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, said, “Arab countries remain to be one of Brazil’s leading interna- tional trade partners, only behind China and the United States. The Arab-Brazil trade rela- tions are only further growing. The region is also the second largest
destination of agribusiness exports from Brazil. All these elements point to Arab states’ vital role in Brazil’s produc- tion sector. The ABCC also assisted last year several com- panies from Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, the UAE, Kuwait, Morocco and Sudan assigned by their governments to im- port beef, poultry, fish, sugar, rice, dairy, maize and fruits to address the surging demand for these products.”
The ABCC report comes at a time when Arab countries are strengthening their trade ties with Brazil, which only has a free trade agreement with Egypt, as part of their food security strategies amid the pandemic. The Chamber has supported calls for the creation of direct logistic lanes bet- ween the country and the Arab nations to further support stronger export and import activities. It has also backed the resumption of talks on free trade agreements post pandemic, particularly between Mercosur and Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine and the GCC.
84 AMEFT 2 2021
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