Azernews.Az

The negotiations between the UAE and Azerbaijan on establishing a business council are at the stage of completion, Azerbaijan's ambassador Elkhan Gahramanov told UAE edition of "Al Khaleej" in an interview.

Gahramanov noted that there is a legal basis for the increase of mutual investment between Azerbaijan and UAE, which will contribute to the development of all types of businesses in these countries.

"There are great opportunities for investments in Azerbaijan and the UAE, and these projects are being considered by the parties. The projects mostly cover tourism, infrastructure, agriculture, light industry and construction sectors", Gahramanov said.

Ambassador said that the fourth business forum was held in order to create constructive and sustainable cooperation between business circles of both countries.

According to Gahramanov, the volume of trade turnover between Azerbaijan and the UAE amounted to $71.47 million in 2010. The import's share in this volume was $56.56 million, the export's - $14.91 million.

During the first six months of 2011, the trade turnover between the two countries reached $70 million.

Gahramanov said that several Azerbaijani companies are operating in UAE, including representative offices of SOCAR (State Oil Company of Azerbaijan), Azerbaijan International Bank and Azerbaijan Airlines.

Gahramanov also stressed that there has been increasing interest of UAE's companies in Azerbaijani market, which is result of the fact that Azerbaijan is currently the most developed country in the region and long-term economic stability is observed on country's market.

"The main fields of UAE companies' activity are tourism, construction, energy, trade and infrastructure. A number of UAE's companies have already establishes their businesses in Azerbaijan in above mentioned spheres," Gahramanov said.