Amidst the current financial crisis in Argentina, opportunities exist for U.S. small business organizations and consulting companies that can teach Argentines how to market to the U.S., said Keith Silver, foreign commercial service officer for the U.S. Commercial Service in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
“In light of Argentina’s failing economy and the low buying power of Argentine consumers, many companies are looking to export to the U.S., but they lack the expertise,” Mr. Silver said during a meeting at the World Trade Center Atlanta June 6.
The “silver lining” in the country’s financial crisis is that Argentine companies previously unknown to the U.S. Commercial Service there are coming to Mr. Silver’s office for advice, so he is finding out about new opportunities for potential U.S. partners, he told GlobalFax.
Argentine companies that cannot sell domestically because of hard financial times in the country want to export, he noted. U.S. firms eyeing opportunities there should consider what will be needed for manufacturing those exports, he said. Some of the Argentine firms approaching Mr. Silver for advice need more food processing equipment, for example, he noted.
For U.S. companies willing to risk investment in Argentina, companies can be bought there for some 30% cheaper than before the country’s currency devaluation last year, Mr. Silver said.
Exports to Argentina will continue because some products and services are simply necessary, such as information technology, he noted. The country is expecting a 3% rebound in gross domestic product for 2003.
Mr. Silver will have a report prepared in July outlining the best prospects for U.S. companies in Argentina, available at www.doc.gov/argentina. Contact Mr. Silver at keith.silver@mail.doc.gov or international trade specialist Darrel Ching in the Atlanta office of the U.S. Commercial Service at (404) 657-1953. Visit www.export.gov for more information.