UAE-Peru trade ties grow stronger

Sunaina Rana / Emirates Business

Ties between Peru and the UAE have seen a burgeoning growth over the past few years in terms of trade, investments and political relations. According to Alvaro Silva-Santisteban, Director of the Trade, Tourism &
Investment Office Peru, UAE, the
total exports from Peru to the UAE have increased by 700% from 2011
to 2014, and a further growth of
43% was experienced from 2014 to March 2016.
Talking to Emirates Business, Silva-Santisteban stated that the two
countries have witnessed an exponential growth in the trade over the past five years. “This deepening of trade relations has opened a bigger window of opportunity for companies intending to be part of Peru’s economic growth, and has raised an awareness on the ease of doing business in our country.”
Peru has been a very attractive destination for the domestic as well as the international investors. The Peruvian government has been taking initiative to invite and offer legal stability to foreign investors on the legislation governing income tax and distribution of dividends.
“Peru offers excellent investment potential. We are a highly diversified economy that has enjoyed sustained growth for the last 15 years. Our role as a trade and investment office is to contribute to the ongoing economic growth of the county by further developing our existing sectors through internationalisation, inward and outward investments and trade.”
It has also been witnessed that the Peru’s main exports to the UAE include gold, bulletproof windows, car windows, food and beverage products, home decors and fashion products, said Alvaro Silva-Santisteban.
UAE investments in Peru — with three big companies based there — amount to US$1.3 to 1.5 billion. Talking about the Peruvian presence in the UAE, Silva-Santisteban said, “Peruvian cuisine has established a firm presence on the UAE culinary scene. This growing awareness of Peru’s cosmopolitan flavours and rich palette of ingredients is contributing to increased demand for our food products across the region.”
Silva-Santisteban added that the Peruvian land has explicit geographical location and diversity of climate enables us to supply fresh products off season. “Today, Peru is the world’s top producer of fishmeal, fish oil, fresh asparagus, paprika and organic bananas; and the world’s second largest producer of artichokes and organic cacao. We also rank among the top ten exporters of avocados, maca, mangoes and processed asparagus. Peru’s organic produce and superfoods are sectors experiencing particularly strong demand from the UAE”.
He affirmed that Peru is an ideal destination for investment. “Our aim is to become the top investment destination for the UAE in Latin America and its third-largest trading partner overall. We are confident our efforts are moving in the right direction, considering the synergies between our countries and the drive we have as a team to achieve our goals,” he pointed out.