Qatar-Italy trade rises 38% to €1.2 billion in H1 2021, says Rigano

Satyendra Pathak Doha The trade volume between Italy and Qatar grew almost 38 percent to reach 1.2 billion euros in the first half of 2021 compared to th...

Satyendra Pathak Doha The trade volume between Italy and Qatar grew almost 38 percent to reach 1.2 billion euros in the first half of 2021 compared to the same period last year, Italian Trade Commissioner to Qatar Giosafat Rigano has said.Talking to Qatar Tribune, Rigano said that the substantial increase in trade volume between Italy and Qatar shows the resumption of economic ties between the two countries despite the COVID-19 crisis.Rigano said that the machinery segment witnessed the biggest increase of 45 percent in the first half of this year. While the trade volume in the furniture segment saw an increase of 42 percent, the fashion sector grew by almost 41 percent.If you look at the food sector, Rigano said, the exports of food products from Italy to Qatar witnessed a steady growth of 3 percent to reach 30 million euros in the first half of this year.Rigano said that LuLu Hypermarket’s longstanding partnership with the Italian Trade Agency (ITA) has helped usher in growth in Italian food exports to Qatar.He said that LuLu Hypermarket in Qatar alone has ordered food products worth over 12 million euros from Italy over the last one year.Underscoring the importance of the ‘Let’s Eatalian Festival’ across Lulu outlets in promoting Italian products in Qatar, Rigano said that there is a tremendous growth of new Italian products in Qatar due to this festival.He stressed that the upcoming opening of LuLu’s new business hub in Milan, Italy will contribute to the further growth of Italian food exports to Qatar and elsewhere.The new LuLu facility in Italy will open doors for new projects, initiatives, and promotional activities to enhance imports from Italy to Qatar, he said.He said the new facility will enable the Lulu Group in sourcing more products from Italy at competitive rates that will ultimately result in making quality Italian products available at cheaper rates in Qatar.Describing LuLu Hypermarket as an extraordinary partner of the Italian Trade Commission (ITA), Rigano said, “We feel proud to be in partnership with LuLu during the past four years. We made great achievements in enhancing imports from Italy to Qatar.”Italian Ambassador to Qatar HE Alessandro Prunas has also lauded the partnership between LuLu Hypermarket Qatar and the ITA in boosting trade between Italy and Qatar.The envoy said, “The partnership is growing fast in terms of increasing the availability of Italian products in Qatar. I am really happy to see the range of products that LuLu is bringing from Italy to Qatar through the agreement between LuLu and ITA.” “Italy offers quality food products in various categories. Italian food is always of high-quality and healthy. Eating Italian food products means eating healthy. The partnership that we are creating through LuLu is expanding a culture of nutrition,” the envoy said.