High-level Brazilian trade team due next month

A high-level trade delegation from Brazil is scheduled to visit Dhaka next month with an aim to strengthen bilateral trade with Bangladesh.

In a letter sent to the Foreign Ministry, Bangladesh Ambassador in Brazil Sadia Faizunnesa said the delegation will visit Bangladesh as Brazil’s President Luiz Inasio Lula Da Silva is looking to expand his country’s trade.

The delegates will visit Dhaka on May 19-22 to explore bilateral trade and investment potential.

Sources said the Foreign Ministry and Commerce Ministry have been asked by the highest echelons of the government to step up efforts for signing Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) or Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Brazil and three other Mercosur countries--Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay. In addition, officials concerned have been asked to bolster agriculture cooperation between Bangladesh and Brazil.

In the letter, Ambassador Saida said Paraná is the second most economically important state in Brazil with a GDP of $1.7 trillion. The country’s second largest cargo port is located in the state.

The delegation members will include Ratinho Júnior, the governor of Paraná state. Paraná is strategically important for Bangladesh due to its transhipment of soybean oil, sugar, cotton and coffee, the letter added.

The Bangladesh government is actively negotiating with Mercosur countries for access to their market which could take Bangladesh’s overall exports to new heights.

According to stakeholders, signing of FTA or PTA with Brazil and Mercosur countries is of high importance for Bangladesh’s export expansion. Particularly, the agreements will open the door to an immense opportunity for Bangladesh’s pharmaceuticals sector.

Meanwhile, President of Latin America-Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LABCCI) Md Anwar Shawkat Afser has announced that a trade delegation from Bangladesh will visit Brazil from July 14-19.