Rio, November 3, 2003 (Agência Brasil - ABr) - Today, in this capital, acting President José Alencar called for greater participation by entrepreneurs in negotiations over the creation of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and suggested that Minister Luiz Fernando Furlan (Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade) should be more active in international trade negotiations. "Minister Furlan is excellent," he said.

Participating in the 44th Latin American Steel Congress, in the Sheraton Hotel, Alencar requested greater integration among Latin American countries to negotiate the FTAA. In his view, when one speaks of integration with other countries, one must assume equal treatment, not excluding matters related to interest rates, taxation, and infrastructure. (DAS)