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Russian market is a huge opportunity for Macedonian exports
The economic cooperation between Macedonia and Russia potential is huge. The trade goes upwards, but the record level of trade of one billion dollars reached in 1991 is not yet reached, said the director of the Macedonian – Russian Chamber of Commerce Dejan Beshliev, for an interview with MIA.
According to him, the biggest problem for achieving extensive trade with Russia is the lack of a free trade agreement.
Statistics show that in the first seven months of this year, the trade with Russia reached $ 150 million, with the participation of Macedonian exports of $15 million. According to Beshliev, a free trade agreement may boost the trade.
It is said that numbers always speak the truth, and the largest trade ever reached is one billion dollars, achieved in 1991 with a wonderful balance of 500 million on both sides. The balance in recent years is disturbed, so Macedonia can not achieve those numbers. On the other hand, the Russian Federation participates in our imports by 90 percent, which is not good for us, but it is also not good for them. The biggest part of those 90 percent accounts for the energy, says Beshliev.
By 2009 there was 969 million dollars trade, with about 300 million on the Macedonian side, 600 million of the Russian side. However, after the 2009 we had a decline in trade that ranged from 200 to 300 million dollars a year and now again in 2012 to 2013 we have a growth of that trade. And if we look at this year we will see that it is better. It is something we must strive to overcome. That figure of 20 to 30 million is low, although now in the last quarter it will grow because of a type of products we sell, but we are still far away, and we have space, says Beshliev.
He says that the reason for this small trade is a lack of free trade agreement and that most of the products are imported from Macedonia to Russia, indirectly through Serbia.
Russian market is a huge opportunity for Macedonian exports | Macedonian News Agency | Kurir.mk
The economic cooperation between Macedonia and Russia potential is huge. The trade goes upwards, but the record level of trade of one billion dollars reached in 1991 is not yet reached, said the director of the Macedonian – Russian Chamber of Commerce Dejan Beshliev, for an interview with MIA.
According to him, the biggest problem for achieving extensive trade with Russia is the lack of a free trade agreement.
Statistics show that in the first seven months of this year, the trade with Russia reached $ 150 million, with the participation of Macedonian exports of $15 million. According to Beshliev, a free trade agreement may boost the trade.
It is said that numbers always speak the truth, and the largest trade ever reached is one billion dollars, achieved in 1991 with a wonderful balance of 500 million on both sides. The balance in recent years is disturbed, so Macedonia can not achieve those numbers. On the other hand, the Russian Federation participates in our imports by 90 percent, which is not good for us, but it is also not good for them. The biggest part of those 90 percent accounts for the energy, says Beshliev.
By 2009 there was 969 million dollars trade, with about 300 million on the Macedonian side, 600 million of the Russian side. However, after the 2009 we had a decline in trade that ranged from 200 to 300 million dollars a year and now again in 2012 to 2013 we have a growth of that trade. And if we look at this year we will see that it is better. It is something we must strive to overcome. That figure of 20 to 30 million is low, although now in the last quarter it will grow because of a type of products we sell, but we are still far away, and we have space, says Beshliev.
He says that the reason for this small trade is a lack of free trade agreement and that most of the products are imported from Macedonia to Russia, indirectly through Serbia.
Russian market is a huge opportunity for Macedonian exports | Macedonian News Agency | Kurir.mk