WadeTradeNews

Welcome to the very first edition of Wade Trade News for 2007. We'll get straight down to business and bring you even more news and opportunities in international trade that can make you money. Read on now for information and hot links for trading with Brazil, Uganda, Norway, Hungary, Hong Kong, EFTA .... and opportunities to start trading nuts.

APEX, the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (www.apexbrasil.com) has announced the signing of 26 agreements with organisations in various sectors to help expand Brazilian exports worldwide. Seven of these agreements are new, and the rest are renewals of existing partnerships. Juan Quirós, President of the agency, said 'These measures show that exports will continue to be a priority. Export and investment promotion will receive US$88.415 million worth of investment, which will be aimed at commercial promotion actions until 2008 for several sectors.' He also estimated that Brazilian exports should increase by 8%-12% next year, even if exchange rates remain at current levels. (The Brazilian currency saw a sharp appreciation relative to the US dollar in 2006, which theoretically should make Brazilian products more expensive abroad.)

The seven new projects were signed with the sectors of visual arts, tourism and real estate in north eastern Brazil; the craftsmanship sector in the north eastern Brazilian state of Ceará; the electro-electronic sector in the south eastern state of Minas Gerais; ethnic products and car parts sectors. Agreements were renewed with the sectors of food and derivatives for animals, sisal fibre, fruit, chicken meat, cookies, textiles and fashion, personal hygiene products and cosmetics, advertising and marketing, musical instruments, medical and hospital equipment, moulds for thermoplastics/thermo-fixed and non-ferrous metals, ornamental rocks, ceramic coatings, plaster, furniture components, glass, decoration objects and gifts, craftwork from the northern Brazilian state of Pará, and industrialised wood.

The Uganda government is partnering with the private sector to formulate an exports strategy in an ambitious effort to address the balance of trade – the deficit between imports and exports which currently stands at almost one thousand percent. The National Export Strategy (NES) is designed to ensure that the country's export sector

becomes more versatile and aggressive. A core team comprising the Uganda Exports Promotions Board, National Planning Authority (NPA), Enterprise Uganda, Private Sector Foundation Uganda and Uganda National Bureau of Standards has begun work on the programme. The NPA Deputy Executive Director, Mr Amos Lugolobi, said 'The success of the strategy will make export development contribute directly to the overall economic and social development of the country in terms of employment creation.'

Unfortunately the Uganda Exports Promotions Board website at www.ugandaexportsonline.com is fairly unreliable – but you can find information and links at the Ministry of Tourism, Trade and Industry website at www.mtti.go.ug.

The basic edible nut has much more going for it than you might think. Nuts are popular in all countries and they're used in all kinds of products, including pharmaceuticals, as well as for food. Every year billions of dollars worth of nuts are traded globally. Did you know that world consumption of almonds has increased by a third over the last few years .... or that Brazil nuts (which aren't just produced in Brazil) are an important source of selenium, which is now believed to have anti-cancer properties? The world's most frequently traded nuts are pistachio, almond, pecan, cashew nut, walnut, hazelnut, macadamia and brazil nut and there are lots of opportunities to buy/sell/trade.

If you'd like to know more about the opportunities for trading nuts then here are two useful sites to help you get started : The International Nut & Dried Fruit Council site at www.nutfruit.org, and the UK's Combined Edible Nut Trade Association (CENTA) site at www.centa.uk.com.

It's true that European Union is one of the world's largest single markets, consisting of 25 countries and over 500 million consumers. But don't forget the EU's 'little brother' EFTA. EFTA is the European Free Trade Association created by Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland – small countries perhaps but important in world trade. Liechtenstein and Switzerland are international financial centres and hosts to major companies and multinationals. Switzerland is a world leader in pharmaceuticals, opticals and watch making. Iceland and Norway are world leaders in fisheries and transport, and Norway is the world's second largest exporter of oil and gas. EFTA has free trade agreements with the EU and many other major nations worldwide. If you want to increase trade links with these countries then take a look at the EFTA Secretariat site at secretariat.efta.int.

Hong Kong jewellery exports in the first 10 months of 2006 exceeded HK$23 billion – an increase of 14% over the same period last year – the Hong Kong Jewellery Manufacturer's Association (HKJMA) announced recently. Speaking at the 2006 World's Jewellery Design Masters, Strategists & Leaders Forum Edward Cheung, Chairman of the association, said that Hong Kong will continue to be the world's fourth largest exporter of precious jewellery, supported by good quality design, quality and craftsmanship.

According to HKJMA, the major markets for Hong Kong jewellery are currently the United States, Europe and Japan. However, experts in the industry believe that the Chinese mainland will become more important to Hong Kong manufacturers, because of the Chinese economic boom. They believe that the Chinese mainland will not only act as a manufacturing centre but also become a massive market for the Hong Kong jewellery industry.

According to the Norwegian Seafood Export Council (www.seafoodfromnorway.com) Norway exported seafood worth NOK4 billion in November 2006 – the highest value ever for seafood in one month – and a NOK 365 million increase over the same month last year. Salmon is still the most popular exported fish product. In November 2006 Norway exported salmon worth NOK1.7 billion – an increase of NOK 238 million over November 2005. Russia is Norway's largest market for seafood with exports valued at NOK 394 million (although it fell by NOK135 million compared to the same month in 2005) that month. The largest increase in seafood exports was to France, Great Britain and Ukraine.

Hungary has suffered from a few political problems recently, but it still has a growing economy – less than booming Romania but higher than most western European EU countries, expanding 4.3% in the last financial year. The private sector accounts for over 80% of GDP and Hungary gets around 30% of all foreign direct investment flowing into the region. Foreign ownership of and investment in Hungarian firms is widespread, with cumulative foreign direct investment totalling more than US$23 billion since 1989. Key industries are pharmaceuticals, electronics, biotechnology, food processing and computer software – and these are modern industries where Hungary can compete effectively with the rest of Europe and the USA.

For background information on doing business with Hungary visit The Hungarian Investment and Trade Development Agency (ITD) site at www.itdh.hu. www.aries.hu is a handy trade site with directories listing lots of Hungarian companies.

We really do hope you find this free monthly bulletin useful – but don't forget that the trade leads you receive here are just a very, very small selection of what Wade World Trade can do for you. Our products and services include professional self-study courses, manuals, advice, information, online resources and worldwide trade and business contacts – more or less everything you need to start up or expand your import-export business. To find out more, visit us at our website at www.wadetrade.com – we're open 24/7.