Living in Peru : your everyday companion

LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Lambayeque region expects to export 2,500 tons of paprika, which are being harvested these days by Pomalca company, close to the town of Pampa Grande (district of Chongoyape).

The product will be exported to North America and and Europe, mainly to Mexico, Spain, the USA, Chile, Guatemala, and Poland.

The harvest started in early November and, according to estimates, will continue throughout all this month.

The field manager of the company, Jose Luis Holguin, added that the harvesting process creates jobs for 90 people, 80% of whom are women.

Some 7,000 hectares in the whole country are dedicated to the cultivation of paprika, especially in Lambayeque, Arequipa, Ica, Tacna and Piura.

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DowJones.com
Anthony Esposito

Chile's foreign minister Mariano Fernandez sent a clear message on Thursday that trade with Peru wouldn't be damaged, at least for now, because of Peru's accusations of Chilean espionage in the country.

Last week Peruvian authorities detained Peruvian military official Victor Ariza Mendoza, alleging he had spied for neighboring Chile. The escalation of verbal hostilities reached a new high when some members of Peru's Parliament asked for the bilateral trade agreement with Chile to be revoked.

Fernandez said that reason will at some point prevail in Peru, leading authorities to see the importance of Chile's economic contribution through commerce. Chile is also the second biggest foreign investor in Peru, he added.

Chile's chief trade negotiator, Carlos Furche, said "from a trade point of view, Chile is more important for Peru and if we take into consideration investments, there is no doubt, because there are some $7 billion of Chilean investment in Peru."

In 2008, Chile exported $1.5 billion worth of goods to Peru, while importing $1.8 billion in goods from Peru.

The espionage allegations have led Peru's nationalist party to demand that Peru's government retaliate on the economic front.

"What we have asked for is a suspension of the free trade deal with Chile," nationalist party leader Ollanta Humala said Tuesday in a broadcast interview.

Relations between the two countries have been especially cool this year because of increased Chilean arms purchases, and Peru's demands at the International Court of Justice at The Hague over a maritime border that Chile considers its own.

Earlier this week Alberto Van Klaveren, Chile's Foreign Relations Under Secretary, left his post to be exclusively in charge of representing Chile at The Hague.

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LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

The 88.1% of major companies in the country will end this year with favorable results, according to the “Business Barometer” conducted by the public group at the University of Lima.

The survey was conducted between October 21st and November 11th, amongst 151 CEOs of major companies based in Peru, and that registered the highest turnovers in 2008.

According to this survey, 82.1% of entrepreneurs will not need to restructure debts nor liabilities, and 85.4% do not have any tax debts either with the SUNAT (Peru's Tax Agency).

Regarding the production levels, 43.8% of the businessmen polled declared that their companies are currently using between 60% and 80% percent of the installed capacity, while 37.1% use between 80% and 100%; and 11.9% said they were using between 40% and 60%.

Finally, 92.7% said their companies are able to successfully confront the FTA with the United States, while only 7.3% felt unprepared.

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Andina

Forty tons of organic aromatic herbs are exported annually to Switzerland by farmers from the departments of Arequipa and Moquegua in southern Peru, said Jose Lombardi, executive director of NGO El Taller which supports this agricultural initiative.

He said that the most produced herbs in Arequipa are oregano, thyme and marjoram, and there are about 400 farmers dedicated to this activity.

The aromatic herbs are planted in the districts of Chiguata, Yarabamba, Quequeña, Mollebaya, Pocsi and Polobaya, as well as in the district of Puquina in the General Sanchez Cerro province of Moquegua.

Three years ago, when NGO El Taller started to work in the southeast area of Arequipa, the hectars of organic aromatic herbs cultivation totaled 100, now the number has risen to 500, and it is expected to reach 800 hectars in two more years.

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LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Juvenal Ordoñez, the Congressman representing  the region of Tacna, confirmed that ProInversion has decided to postpone the tender of its southern airports to private sector for February 2010.

The fifth version of the concession contract - recently pushed back from October 30th to November 13th is now due to November 23th.

Ordóñez said that the government should reconsider the political implications, since the Carlos Ciriani Airport (in Tacna) has a strategical location due to its proximity to the Chilean border.

According to BNAmericas, the companies interested in submitting their proposals will have time until December 7th.

According to Andina news agency, the concession package includes six airports: Apurímac region's Andahuaylas airport, terminals in the regions of Arequipa and Ayacucho, Puno's Juliaca, Puerto Maldonado in Madre de Dios and Tacna.

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LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Local press reported today that the Wong Group (Ewong) would terminate their association with their first company, Grupo de Supermercados Wong-GSW (Wong Supermarkets Group), which operates Wong and Metro as well.

The Wongs would do this move before January 31st, 2010; they are still indirectly connected to GSW through their participation in the Chilean holding Cencosud.

As part of the GSW purchasing terms, the Wongs acquired a 2.28% of Cencosud shares (almost 50 million of shares), with the option of leaving Cencosud by means of a selling option that oblige Cencosud to buy out the Wong's shares at the price of 2,000 Chilean pesos (US $4) per share, before January 31st, 2010.

That would make US $200 million dollars, and reportedly the Wong family needs those funds now in order to finance another projects, such as the ones in the sugar sector.

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Andina

In order to reach the quality standards of port infrastructure in the region, at least US$2 billion must be invested in the modernization of our ports;. This amount represents 20 percent of the needs in transport infrastructure, the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL) reported Sunday.

Considering that more than 90 percent of our exports are performed thanks to maritime transport, it is necessary to take urgent measures on this issue, especially for differences we have with our closest trading partner in the region, Chile.

Chile leads the ranking in South America on quality of port infrastructure published by the World Economic Forum, while Peru is ranked 126 of 133 countries. Chile is ranked 27.

In order to promote investments in infrastructure and security in  port transportation, besides analyzing different alternatives for a solution that may have an impact on the port development of the country, the Lima Chamber of Commerce (CCL) will organize the Eighth International Forum on Ports.

The CCL emphasized the importance of the port development in the country, because it has an impact on the strengthening of Peruvian foreign trade development.

This event is scheduled for November 17, 2009, and will reinforce the need of having an efficient port system in the country.

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LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

The governments of Thailand and Peru subscribed today the 2nd protocol of Free Trade Agreement between both countries, with Prime Minister Abhisit Vejajiva and President Alan Garcia.

This is the 2nd Aditional Protocol between the Republic of Peru and the Kingdom of Thailand to speed up commercial trade.

The document was signed during the 17th  Meeting of Leaders of the Asian Pacific Economin Cooperation Forum, at Singapur.

The supscription of the document was in charge of Foreign Trade Minister of Peru, Martin Perez, and Trade Vice Minister of Thailand, Alongkorn Ponlaboot.

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LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

Supermercados Peruanos has just opened its 40th Plaza Vea store, in the district of Bellavista, Callao. Plaza Vea Colonial Plaza is located between Colonial Ave. And Hipolito Unanue St., right in front of Urbanizacion San Jose, and is expected to serve customers from La Perla, Carmen de la Legua and Cercado de Lima districts.

This is the second Plaza Vea in Callao, built on a area of approximately 6,300 square meters and has 50 parking spaces for customers.

Reportedly it will have the largest and most varied offers in several categories including food, vegetables, fruit, meat, groceries, household appliances, textiles and furniture.

Colonial Plaza Vea will also have an Interbank agency, an Inkafarma pharmacy and an Econolentes shop.. Norberto Rossi, General Manager, reported that the construction required an investment of $ 7.5 million.

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LivinginPeru.com
Isabel Guerra

A delegation of Peruvian congressmen, led by Peru's First Vice President Luis Giampietri, is supervising the advance of the construction works at the new Southern Containers Terminal, aka "Muelle Sur" (South Dock), in Callao Port.

The delegation, conformed by Carlos Raffo, Luis Galarreta, María Elena Moyano, Cenaida Uribe, Luis Negreiros, Walter Menchola and Daniel Abugattás, has been welcomed on site by Maciek Kwiatkowski, General Manager of DP World Callao.

DP World Callao is responsible for the design, financing, construction and subsequent operation of South Dock.

According to the terms of the contract signed with DP World Callao, the construction will be completed by April next year, achieving the goal of concluding the project twelve months before the agreement.

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