Kazakhstan and Brazil expand opportunities for investment cooperation
The prospects of investment and trade cooperation between Brazil and Eurasian countries were discussed during the International Seminar at the FIESP Brazilian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The event was attended by the Ambassador of the Republic of Kazakhstan to Brazil Kairat Sarzhanov and over 60 Brazilian companies operating in various sectors. The Director of Strategic Analysis at KAZAKH INVEST Zhandos Temirgali presented Kazakhstan’s investment potential and opportunities in the priority sectors of the economy.
In addition, with support of the Embassy of the Republic of Kazakhstan, KAZAKH INVEST held negotiations with the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (APEX-BRASIL). During the meeting, the parties discussed issues of bilateral economic cooperation between Kazakhstan and Brazil as well as the achievements of the two organizations in attracting foreign investments. The Vice President of APEX-BRASIL, Mr.Augusto Pestana emphasized that the two countries have much in common in terms of geography, history and economics.
Following the meeting, KAZAKH INVEST and APEX-BRASIL signed a Memorandum of Cooperation. The document will become a Roadmap for mutually beneficial partnership, information exchange and experience.
Additionally, during the visit to Brazil, the Director of Strategic Analysis at KAZAKH INVEST Zhandos Temirgali conducted a number of meetings with Brazilian multinational corporations, such as JBS, Minerva Foods and Embraer. The parties discussed the possibilities of investment cooperation in the fields of agricultural sector and machinery building.
“JBS is the second largest food producer in the world with 60 years of experience, 235 thousand employees in 22 countries and 350 thousand customers in 150 countries. JBS processes beef, pork, lamb, chicken and produces value-added and processed foods. Daily, our company processes 80 thousand heads of cattle, more than 14 million poultry, 115 thousand pigs and 100 thousand skins. Worldwide, we have about 400 production facilities and we are planning further expansion. Kazakhstan has great potential in the agricultural sector. After the presentation on Kazakhstan’s investment potential, we are interested in cooperation in the field of meat processing” - said Pedro Bordon, the Executive Director of JBS Corporation during the meeting.
During a meeting with the Minerva Foods, KAZAKH INVEST presented the opportunities of the agricultural industry in Kazakhstan, including a resource base, export and logistics potential, as well as measures of state support for investors. In addition, the company was presented “packaged” niche projects worth $40 million. Following the meeting, the Brazilian side confirmed their interest in visiting Kazakhstan. During a meeting with the Director of International Development of the world's third-largest aircraft manufacturer - Embraer Corporation, the parties discussed the capabilities of the aircraft building industry in Kazakhstan and implementation of specific projects in Kazakhstan.
“In Kazakhstan, with state support, there are opportunities for producing a wide range of the aircraft industry goods from aircraft components to large-unit assembly. In addition, our country has access to large export markets”, - said Zhandos Temirgali.
It is worth noting that Brazil currently occupies 6th place in the world in attracting foreign investments and has over 21 thousand exporting enterprises. In 2018, trade turnover between the two countries grew by 14% and amounted to $ 153.2 million, while the volume of Kazakh export increased almost 2 times to $ 50.9 million. The Kazakhstan’s main export products to Brazil include sulfur, ferrosilicon, plastic products, rubber and ferrous metals, natural uranium concentrate. The main goods of imports from Brazil to Kazakhstan include sugar, tobacco, machinery and construction materials.
