Foreign Trade Minister Vilén to Saudi Arabia to promote Finnish export

Foreign Trade Minister Jari Vilén will visit Saudi-Arabia on 5-10 October accompanied by a 16-member business delegation promoting Finnish export. Saudi Arabia is the biggest market in the Middle East and the second most important trading partner for Finland following the United Arab Emirates. The visit will also market Finland as an investment target and expediate bilateral investment protection talks. Minister Vilén vill visit Riad and Yedda.

During his visit, Minister Vilén will meet several top-ranking Saudi cabinet members. The visit will be hosted by Minister of Commerce Osama Jafer bin Ibrahim Faqeeh and meetings will take place with cabinet members responsible for telecommunications, health, petroleum and mineral resources, electricity and industry. Minister Vilén will have political discussions with Defence Minister Prince Sultan bin Abdelaziz Al Saudi.

Visits will also take place at the Gulf Cooperation Council, the Chamber of Commerce, the Islamic Development Bank and the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology where also Finnish companies are located. The Finnish export promotion agency Finpro will organise a Finnish-Saudi economic seminar in Riad on Wednesday, 9 October. Minister Vilén will also participate at an energy seminar by the Finnish energy corporation Fortum.

Finland’s export to Saudi Arabia has vigorously increased during the recent years and the balance of trade is in surplus for Finland. The volume of trade increased by 130 percent during the first six months of 2002. In 2001 the trade balance peaked at 270 million euros. More than half of the Finnish export to Saudi Arabia consists of telecommunication products, mainly cellular phones. Timber and paper industry products comprise 10 percent of export each. The Saudi Arabian import consists dominantly of raw plastics (90 percent).

The business delegation represents high technology, energy, information technology, health technology, environmental technology and financial services. The delegation is led by Timo Rosenlöf, President and CEO of Naps Systems.

The delegation includes: Cudo-Cudo, Ensto, Environics, Fortum, Heinolan Viqua, Industrial IT Laboratory of the Helsinki University of Technology, Kiantama, Kone, Leiras, Naps, Nixu, Nokia, Nokian Tyres, Nordea, Protekno Puzair, Scott Health and Safety, Wärtsilä Oyj.

Project Manager Kirsti Tarvainen, gsm 040 343 3434, at Finpro’s Trade Center Network is responsible for the programme and the composition of the delegation.

Further information: Arja Makkonen, Adviser to the Minister for Foreign Trade, gsm 040- 757 8403, and Leena Ritola, Counsellor, gsm 040-824 7215