JEDDAH, 8 June 2003 — The Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry discussed the prospects of further cooperation at a meeting with a visiting Indian trade delegation yesterday.
“We’re prepared to give all help and assistance to foreign companies in expanding the IT sector,” JCCI’s Acting Secretary-General Muhammad A. Al-Sharif told the delegation.
“Our businessmen have shown particular interest in your country as it has made considerable progress in IT,” Al-Sharif told the visiting team.
The delegation, consisting of 15 textile manufacturing and exporting companies organized by the Ministry of Commerce-sponsored Federation of Indian Export Organizations, is in the city on the last leg of a Kingdomwide tour. It also visited Riyadh and Dammam.
“As a follow-up to this mission, we’re leading a multiproducts delegation to the Kingdom in early September,” Rajesh Bhatia, joint director of the Bombay-based federation, told reporters at a two-day meeting on multifiber products of textiles which ends today.
Bhatia said textile and clothing exports constituted a major segment of India’s total exports and had registered an increase from $9.56 billion in 1996-97 to $12.10 billion in 2000-01 with an annual growth rate of 6.08 percent.
“The readymade garments sector is among the largest, contributing around 41 percent of the total textile exports,” he said.
“Some companies represented in the mission are new and their products will interest local traders,” said Abdul Karim Munshi, a Saudi businessman.
Some of the team members are here for the first time and are seeking local agents and partnerships.
“The Kingdom’s market is potentially rich and has vast scope for expansion. We find a great demand for cotton clothes, readymade garments and dresses,” said R.K. Chokhani, director of a company that deals in material for thobes and ghutras.
Prabhat Kumar and Balram Narula, two other members of the delegation, said they would consider exploring prospects for launching joint venture textile looms in the Kingdom.
“However, it’s not possible in the immediate future. This could be a future project for consideration. Immediately we would like to have local agents for our products,” Narula said.
