This year Brest region enterprises have been able to reach six new target markets, Mikhail Batsenko, Chairman of the Economy Committee of the Brest Regional Executive Committee, reported.
In January-June Brest region exported merchandise to 74 countries. For the first time Brest region enterprises started exporting products for holidays and carnivals to Brazil, apparel to Portugal, alcohol beverages to Tanzania, and children toys to Lebanon, Ecuador and Saudi Arabia.
“All of them are the so-called distant-arc countries. Our enterprises are trying to secure their grasp on these markets and are doing it quite well. I would like to note that shipments to the markets opened in 2015 were not a one-time affair”, Mikhail Batsenko said. He mentioned Iran, the Philippines, and Japan as an example. These countries continue buying textile machines, milk whey, and toys respectively.
In H1 2016 Brest region enterprises exported $849.3 million worth of merchandise, down by 2.4% YoY. They secured a foreign trade surplus of $209.2 million. Export to the European Union rose by 23%, to Asia, Africa, and Oceania – by 18.4%. Brest region and Mogilev region are Belarus’ top merchandise exporters.
Russia is the main foreign trade partner for Brest region and buys about 80% of the merchandise. The top five buyers also include Poland, Kazakhstan, and Germany. Ukraine has returned to the top five, with shipments up by 70% YoY. Brest region enterprises have virtually restored the volume of export to Ukraine that they lost in the last two years, said Mikhail Batsenko. (BelTA/Business World Magazine)