Finnish trading enterprises showing sharp growth in Russia

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According to estimates made by the Association of Finnish Technical Traders, sales to Russia by Finnish wholesalers and retailers will reach more than EUR 1.3 billion in the course of the current year. The exports of commercial sector services to the neighbouring country are showing the strongest growth.
      The total sales of Finnish commercial enterprises to Russia have increased by some 33 per cent since last year, even though the entire exports to the eastern neighbour have grown by ”just” some six per cent over the same period.
     
Exports by wholesalers into the Russian market grew even more, by around 45 per cent from last year, while the number of employees at Finnish trading enterprises in Russia doubled to around 4,500 persons in the past twelve months. The number of business premises of Finnish enterprises in Russia is now 72, most of them located in St. Petersburg and Moscow.
      During the first half of 2007, the gross sales of Finnish wholesale and retail trading conceerns to Russia came close to EUR 0.5 billion.
      Even though the growth in these exports to Russia represents an eightfold rise over the average annual increase, the Finnish government has hardly focused on promoting the export of commercial services, says Klaus Katara, the Managing Director of the Association of Finnish Technical Traders.
     
The sharply growing exports of commercial services would need particular support relating to market analyses, in other words how the Russian markets develop and where to find potential customers and new untapped business prospects.
      "Finnish businesses are rapidly going global, and in order to establish our market position and to lower the investment threshold, we should speed things up. Everybody admits that it is important to increase our exports to Russia, while concrete actions are still lacking", Katara argues.
      Klaus Katara notes futher that Russia is the most significant market area for Finns, particularly for those commercial enterprises who find the domestic market too restricted.
     
”Trade investments are the largest investments made in Russia, and the related markets are being divided out now. Therefore it is vital for Finnish firms to secure a position for themselves in the Russian market”, Katara says.
      Even though the lines of trucks on the Russian border have attracted a good deal of media attention, Katara believes that it would be even more important to establish common rules for exports to Russia, including for example certification, common standards, and the abolition of double invoicing.


Previously in HS International Edition:
  Russian Chamber of Commerce encourages investment in Russia (7.3.2006)
  Finnish clothing chain Seppälä plans major expansion in Russia (24.1.2006)
  Finnish companies more interested in investing in Russia (12.5. 2004)

Links:
  The Association of Finnish Technical Traders

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