Argentine visitors flock to Fimec

The 27th edition of the Fimec show held in the city of Novo Hamburgo, 45 km from Porto Alegre, the capital of the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, closed Sunday April 27. The event this year witnessed a high number of visitors from Argentina and Colombia. 3,717 foreign visitors attended Fimec the international fair for machinery and suppliers for the leather and footwear sectors. From the total number of foreign visitors 716 were Argentinian and 83 Colombian. 1,046 exhibitors took part in the show, which was held April 24-27. 'It's rewarding to see this revival of the Argentinian market which, since the year 2000, we had not seen such a significant number of attendees at Fimec', said Júlio Seidl, president of Fenac, the promoter of the event. Last year, the fair was visited by 482 Argentinian and 55 Colombians. The show was also quite successful for the Brazilian tanning industry according to their association. 'This year is really promising for the tanneries', said Cezar Müller, representative of the Centre of the Brazilian Tanning Industries (CICB). 'There was an increase of 26% in the number of visitors during this edition of Fimec compared with last year. Global exports in the Brazilian tanning sector grew by 20% in the first quarter of 2003, compared with the same period of 2002', he added. The organisers of the show are also looking to sign a partnership contract for the construction of a new 6,000 square-meter exhibition pavilion on the fair ground site in Novo Hamburgo. 'We are conducting a feasibility study to begin the construction work', said Eduardo Kunst, president of Assintecal.