TPT May 2008

SHOW FACTS ❖ ❖

DATES & SHOW HOURS 27-30 May 2008: 10am-6pm VENUE ZAO Expocentr Krasnaya Presnaya (pavilion 7), Moscow, Russia ORGANISER CONTACTS Metal Expo Phone: +7 495 901 996 Email: yakovenko@metal-expo.ru Website: www.metal-expo.ru

1.4m cars of foreign origin will be produced in Russia (source: RIA Novosti). A number of manufacturers – including Toyota, Nissan, Volkswagen, Suzuki and General Motors – are planning to join existing companies Ford and Renault. However, with all this positive news, there are a number of complex question marks that remain. There is an element of uncertainty over May’s leadership handover from outgoing President Vladimir Putin to relative unknown Dmitriy Medvedev, and the impact on the government’s balance of power and foreign policy. Perhaps a sign of the future, a law was recently passed in Russia’s State Duma that restricts foreign ownership of Russian companies to under 50 per cent in 42 ‘strategic’ sectors.

Messe Düsseldorf GmbH Phone: +49 211 4560 7715

Email: wolfgramc@messe-duesseldorf.de Website: www.metallurgy-tube-russia.com INTERNET RESOURCES

www.tripadvisor.com www.realrussia.co.uk www.russiatoday.ru

www.rbth.rg.ru http://en.rian.ru

Of course, more pressing concerns for those doing business in Russia are expensive freight and high cost of living in Moscow. Due to such a busy calendar of events, it is also becoming increasingly difficult for companies to decide which exhibitions to attend in Russia. Questions remain whether a company should attend the larger Tube Russia held in the same year as wire Russia, or even if it might be worth testing the waters at the growing Metal Expo event.

■ Whatever the approach, it would be naïve not to explore the lucrative possibilities of the Russian market. And by attending an event such as Tube Russia, it may be possible to simplify business by acquiring a Russian agent. Those who experience the greatest success in the Russian market assert that working with a local agent is the most effective strategy.

 Russia ’ s iconic centre of learning – Moscow State University

35

M ay 2008

›

www.read-tpt.com