Bolstering trade deals is among government’s priorities

Brazilian vice-President and Minister of Development, Industry, Trade, and Services Geraldo Alckmin said today (Mar. 5) that strengthening trade agreements with neighboring countries and boosting industry through digitalization and reduced bureaucracy are among the government’s current economic priorities.

The statement was made at the opening of the 1st National Meeting of Industry and Services, held at the headquarters of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp). The event is expected to finish late this afternoon and is being attended by 30 sectoral organizations representing some 6 thousand companies.

“President Lula inserted Brazil back into the global market starting with its neighbors here in South America. The world may be globalized, but trade is very much intra-regional. If we take Canada, the US and Mexico, half of it is among them; if you take the European Union, 60 percent is among them,” he noted.

“We need to catch up with our neighbors and resume exports and trade in our region. In Latin America, intra-regional trade alone totals 26 percent. The first piece of good news was the expansion of Mercosur. There were four countries, then Bolivia joined. After 12 years, Mercosur reached an agreement with Singapore and is working with the European Union. This progress is going to be really important. It’s permanent. It’s an effort that Mercosur has made,” he added.

Brazil, he went on to argue, “doesn’t have any disputes,” which should be used as an advantage in closing deals, adding that the moment is marked by “a lot of liquidity” in the world and that this could lead to an increase in investments in the country.