28TH US TRADE SHOW 2022
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27 Oct 2022
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10:00 am
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Pan Pacific Sonargaon Hotel
Cosponsored by: The American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh (AmCham) and The U.S. Embassy in Bangladesh
Commerce minister Tipu Munshi inaugurates 28th US Trade Show 2022 organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh and the US embassy at the Hotel Sonargaon in the capital Dhaka on Thursday. United States assistant secretary of commerce for global markets Arun Venkataraman, US ambassador Peter Haas and AmCham president Syed Ershad Ahmed were also present.
United States assistant secretary of commerce for global markets Arun Venkataraman on Thursday said that the US Trade Show brought opportunities for the US and Bangladesh to grow together and win together. At the opening ceremony of the 28th US Trade Show 2022 at the Hotel Sonargaon in the capital Dhaka, the US assistant secretary said that businesses of his country were now stand ready to help provide Bangladesh solutions for further growth and development and the help develop infrastructure.
Specially, the US companies stand ready to help provide Bangladesh solutions for the development of energy sector, he said. Venkataraman said that the US companies also see Bangladesh’s information technology, franchise in health care, digital economy and blue economy sectors as the areas of partnership. He said that trade between the US and Bangladesh accounted for an estimated $10 billion, showcasing the vast existing and potential opportunities in Bangladesh. Bangladesh commerce minister Tipu Munshi inaugurated the three-day trade show organised by the American Chamber of Commerce in Bangladesh and the US embassy in Dhaka. A total of 44 US companies are showcasing products in 76 stalls. The minister invited the US companies to make investment in Bangladesh especially in energy, infrastructure, agro processing and tourism sectors. Tipu Munshi said that the US was the largest export destination for Bangladesh and bilateral trade between the two countries reached $10 billion. Exports from the US to Bangladesh are increasing and hopefully the trade show would create opportunities to increase both the trade and the investment between the two countries, he said. US ambassador Peter Haas said that there were room for the US companies to help Bangladesh to make the transition not only developing country but to middle-income country, eventually to a developed country by 2041. US businesses are playing an important role in energy, pharmaceuticals, digital economy, health care, education and agro processing industries in Bangladesh, the ambassador said. AmCham president Syed Ershad Ahmed said that most of the renowned US companies participated in the trade show and AmCham was trying to build a positive image of the country by holding the trade show. He said that the exhibition had been being organised annually since 1992, but it was not held in 2021 due to the Covid outbreak. Before the inauguration of the trade show, commerce minister Tipu Munshi and US assistant secretary Arun Venkataraman discussed the bilateral trade and investment cooperation. Following the meeting, Tipu Munshi told reporters that the restoration of generalised system of preferences for Bangladeshi products in the US market was discussed in the meeting. The US side also discussed double fumigation of US cotton and demanded revoking it, the minister said. ‘All the issues, including duty-free market access of Bangladeshi products in the US market under GSP facility and the double fumigation of the US cotton will be discussed in the next meeting of the Trade and Investment Cooperation Forum Agreement to be held in December,’ Tipu Munshi said.
