By NNN-KUNA
Tokyo : The Abu Dhabi government-affliated trading firm will hold the first meeting in Tokyo on Feb 25, aimed at attracting Japanese investment to the capital of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a leading business daily here reported Friday.
In a move that reflects the UAE’s desire to diversify its industrial structure and lessen its reliance on oil revenues, the meeting will be cosponsored by Abu Dhabi Trade House LLC, the UAE embassy in Japan and the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO), targeting Japanese firms in the petrochemical, steel and aluminum sectors as potential investors, according to the Nikkei Shimbun.
Abu Dhabi Trade House is a joint venture established by the Abu Dhabi government and Japanese major trading house Marubeni Corp. and focuses on the three core business activities of trade, investment and project development.
The UAE is Japan’s second-largest oil supplier after Saudi Arabia, and Japan relies on the emirates for a quarter of its annual crude oil imports.
Earlier this year, Japanese Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Akira Amari and Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan reached a framework agreement to facilitate investments by UAE government-backed funds and energy firms in Japanese projects.