Bilateral Relations Between Russia and Sweden Are Gaining Momentum on the Forum Track
Anton Kobyakov, Adviser to the President of the Russian Federation and Peter Ericson, the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Sweden, met in Moscow. During the meeting they discussed the participation of the Swedish delegation in the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum (SPIEF) on 24–26 May 2018, including a detailed discussion of the Russian-Swedish panel as part of the Business Programme of the Forum. Heads of the largest Swedish companies will join the delegation from Sweden.
Anton Kobyakov emphasized a positive trend in the development of the bilateral trade, which in January-February 2018 grew by 75% compared to the same period in 2017 and amounted to about $1 billion.
“This dynamic goes a long way. About 350 Swedish companies have their representative offices in Russia. Their direct investment in the Russian economy over the nine months of 2017 went up 1.5 times, making Sweden the ninth biggest investor in the Russian economy,” – he said.
During the meeting, Swedish Ambassador to Russia Peter Ericson stated “Swedish companies take a keen interest in Russia and investing in the Russian market. For the first time in three years, the Swedish business heavy hitters will be a part of the delegation. CEOs of AstraZeneca, Volvo Group, Stena, Oriflame will come with long-term plans for co-operation with Russian partners.”
Russia-Sweden round table Digital Business Transformation And Investment Potential will take place on 24 May 2018. The discussion participants will take a look at the major challenges of digitalization and the issues of large companies business processes adaptation to new digital economy requirements, will share best practices on the transition to an innovative business model, and discuss options for co-operation in the matter.
Anton Kobyakov noted the relevance of the digitalization discussion. He conveyed that the topic of Digital Business Transformation And Investment Potential coincides with one of the key lines of the Russian economy development, stated by the President of the Russian Federation in the State of the Federation speech, namely – ensuring state-of-the-art technological development, which is impossible without digital technologies best practices exchange. This becomes especially relevant intersectorally and the round table participants will certainly illustrate this.
