Brasília, May 31, 2004 (Agência Brasil) - "Concrete expression will be given to what President Lula has called a new geography of trade," affirmed Ambassador Rubens Ricúpero, referring to the meeting of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) between June 13 and 18, in São Paulo.

Interviewed by journalists on Friday (28), Ricúpero remarked that President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva's expression will serve as a motto for the debates at the gathering. "It is a very felicitous phrase, in my view, and will be practically the slogan of the conference."

For the Ambassador, who was been secretary-general of the UNCTAD since 1995, the appropriateness of the expression is due to the fact that "nowadays South-South trade, among developing countries, is no longer a promise; it is a reality."

"Even for the advanced countries, trade with the developing world is already very significant," Ricúpero also affirmed. The Ambassador cited figures to justify his argument: "For Japan this trade represents 49% of the total, nearly half, in large part on account of China and the other Asian countries, the 41 economies of Asia and the Pacific are growing and will grow for 10 years at a rate of 6%. For the United States this trade currently represents 43%. Consequently, trade with the South is not an alternative to trade with the North; it's a complement. And it should be intensified."

Ricúpero also emphasized the growth of China, recalling that last year sales to China accounted for 10% of Argentina's exports and nearly 7% of Brazil's. "It is drawing closer and closer to the day when trade among gigantic countries like India, China, Brazil, and South Africa will probably represent over 50% of world trade," he asserted.

For the Ambassador, this new geography of trade affects Brazil "positively." "Brazil increased its exports 21% in 2003. This is a fantastic fact, when one thinks that world trade grew only 4.7%."

Reporter: Spensy Pimentel
Translator: David Silberstein