Dubai - 12/8/2003 - Yesterday president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva opened a week-long Brazilian business fair in Dubai which will attract visitors from all over the Middle East. On exhibition will be samples of the wide range of goods Brazil has to offer - from fruit in natura to aircraft.

Some 20,000 invitations to the Brazil Week event were sent out for the fair which Brazil spent US$700,000 to set up. The fair will also present a sample of Brazilian culture in the form of musical presentations by samba groups.

According to minister of Development, Luiz Fernando Furlan, the government intends to triple exports the Arab world over the next four years, raising them from US$2.7 billion annually to around US$8 billion. (AB)