Urals federal district presented in Paris

About 250 promising business projects of potential interest to France will be set out during the presentation of the Urals federal district to be held in Paris on October 27 through 31.

RIA Novosti was told at the Russian trade mission in France that the district's delegation stakes on the projects related to power engineering, oil, gas and chemical industries, as well as housing and communal sector.

The Urals delegation headed by the Russian president's envoy to the Urals federal district, Pyotr Latyshev, will meet French businessmen and representatives of the authorities.

France is an important trade partner of the Urals federal district with natural gas being the main sales item. The index being $1.54 bln the district makes 34% of the trade turnover between Russia and France.

Without gas, trade turnover between the Urals federal district and France made up $321 mln in 2002. France ranks 13th in these terms among the Urals' trade partners.

The bulk of the district's export to France falls on energy products. Import includes machine-building products, polymers, perfumes and cosmetics.

As far as investments are concerned, France invested $90 mln in the non-financial economic sector of the Urals federal district in the first six months of the current year.