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Streamlined resources for US firms to do business in Eurasia
ERBD and BISNIS aim to provide "one-stop shopping" for export/finance info
US companies should find it easier do business in Russia and the rest of the
former Soviet Union, thanks to a memorandum of understanding signed today
between the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the US
Commerce Department’s Business Information Service for the Newly Independent
States (BISNIS).
The new partnership provides for “one-stop shopping” in which both export
promotion and financing information will be shared with each organisation’s
business clients, said Noreen Doyle, First Vice President at the EBRD. This
collaboration with BISNIS is an important step in expanding US commercial
engagement in Russia and the rest of the former Soviet Union.
“One of the biggest obstacles that US businesses face in exporting to Eurasia
is lack of knowledge about financing opportunities,” said Trevor Gunn,
Director of BISNIS. “This partnership solidifies our ongoing export promotion
efforts by providing businesses with firsthand information on financing
opportunities for firms.”
The two organisations bring considerable resources to bear for US companies.
The London-based ERBD has over the past decade invested more than $20 billion
in central and eastern Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, and
has 32 offices across the region. Headquartered in Washington, DC, BISNIS has
17 representatives in Eurasia, including in Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia,
Azerbaijan, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and several in Russia. Since
BISNIS's inception in 1992, it has helped to facilitate approximately $3.4
billion in US export and investment in Eurasia through export counseling,
market information, and other services.
Trade between the U.S. and the Eurasian states nearly quadrupled between 1992
and 2002, reaching nearly $12 billion last year. Key sector opportunities for
American firms include industrial machinery, oil and gas equipment, food
processing and packaging, automotive, and medical and telecommunications
equipment.
Mr Gunn said coordination will take place through business counselling
efforts, hosting of seminars, website outreach, and other joint promotional
events.
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