Fifth International Forum Moscow-Invest-2002 to Open in Milan

The fifth international investment forum Moscow-Invest 2002, organised by the Moscow International Business Association, will be held in Milan on October 18th-19th. According to organisers, Minister of Economic Development and Trade of Russia German Gref, Minister of Finance Alexei Kudrin, Minister of Science and Industrial Policy Ilya Klebanov, the top officials of the Central Bank, and the heads of the structural elements of the Moscow government are expected to participate in its work.

Mayor of Milan Gabriele Albertini, president of the fund Centre for Development of Italo-Russian Relations and president of the Italo-Russian chamber of commerce Rosario Alessandrello, president of Lombardy Region Roberto Formigoni, president of metropolitan Region Lazio Francesco Storace, president of the Assolombarda Association of Industrialists of Lombardy Region Mario Perini, vice-president of the Italian Confederation of Industrialists Confindustria Giovanni Cerutti, the heads of the leading Ministries and of regional governments, and representatives of business and financial circles will take part in the forum from the Italian side.

The official opening of the forum is to take place on Friday. Mayors of Moscow and Milan Yuri Luzhkov and Gabriele Albertini will address the participants with a greeting.

Besides that, Luzhkov will hold a number of meetings with representatives of large companies participating in the forum to discuss investment projects of cooperation. Visits to Italian enterprises, a cultural programme, an excursion to Turin, and a friendly football match between the teams of the Moscow government and of the city Council of Milan are planned for the Russian participants in the forum.

Italy now is a leading economic partner of Russia and is ranking seventh in the total sum of the capital investments in the Russian economy. In 2001, trade between Russia and Italy increased by 30 per cent. In Russia Italian entrepreneurs actively work in such sectors as production of consumer goods, construction, trade, public catering, and supplies of machines, equipment, building materials and bathroom-and-lavatory equipment.