By IANS,
Bangalore : About 120 Indian firms will participate in the 11th Arab International Plastics and Rubber Industry trade fair (Arabplast 2013) from Jan 7-10 in Dubai to showcase their plastic products and machinery to boost exports in the Gulf region and penetrate West Asian and African markets.
Organised by Al Fajer Information and Services in association with Messe Dusseldorf GmbH of Germany and other overseas partners, the four-day biennial event will be held at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.
Al Fajer Information and Services is a subsidiary of Al Fajer Enterprises, owned by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) ruler prince Sheikh Hasher Al Maktoum.
“Though exports account for only 10 percent of the total production (12.5 million tonnes), about 120 Indian firms from the plastics and petrochemicals industry have registered to participate in the ensuing mega event as against 72 firms in the previous (10th) edition in 2011,” Al Fajer Information and Services general manger Satish Khanna told reporters here.
Indian plastic industry exported a range of products, including polymers, films/sheets and other packaging materials valued at $7 billion in fiscal 2011-12, registering 37 percent growth over previous fiscal (2010-11), accounting for 2.3 percent of the total merchandise exports, which was $307 billion.
“India accounted for 5.8 percent of the $4 billion worth plastic goods UAE imported in 2011, while China’s share was 17 percent, Saudi Arabia 16.8 percent and Germany 6.3 percent. Our exports during this fiscal (2012-13) is projected to increase 15-20 percent,” Plastics Export Promotion Council (Plexconcil) executive director Rajan Kalyanpur said on the occasion.
Plexconcil, a non-profit body of the commerce department, set up by the central government to promote export of Indian plastic products and machinery, is the alliance partner of Al Fajer for the premier plastic event in the Gulf region.
“Through Arabplast, we are not only targetting the UAE market, but also the entire West Asia and Africa region under the department’s Market Access Initiative (MAI) to reach a wide range of players in the plastic chain,” Kalyanpur said.
As the UAE is among the top three trading partners of the Indian plastic industry and Dubai being a major trading hub, Khanna said participating Indian firms would have an opportunity to strengthen their presence to enhance their exports, as plastic consumption had extended to new sectors such as automotive and aerospace.
“Arabplast is one of the most popular trade fair events in the UAE, where about 900 exhibitors will showcase a wide array of plastics from raw materials (polymers) to semi-finished and finished goods. About 26,000 visitors from 110 countries are expected to attend the show,” Khanna pointed out.
As part of the mega event, many interactive business meetings will be held during the fair for stakeholders, including importers, distributors, end-users, manufacturers/processors, supply agents, researchers and experts from the industry worldwide.
“The estimated potential in the Gulf region and West Asia is about $30 billion and $16 billion in Africa for our exporters, whose share is around three percent in both the geographies. There is immense scope to double the share in the next five years,” Kalyanpur noted.