Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Prospects for using the import substitution platform of the Belarusian Universal Commodity Exchange (BUCE) for the development of trade relations and mutual promotion of products of Belarusian and Uzbek manufacturers were discussed during a visit to the central office of BUCE by a delegation of business circles and local authorities of Ferghana region of the Republic Uzbekistan.

In particular, according to the Uzbek side, the exchange platform can become a valuable information resource for companies from the Fergana region that would like to supply import-substituting goods to the Republic of Belarus, as well as simplify the purchase of Belarusian products that are in demand in Uzbekistan.

“The exchange trading platform is primarily interesting as a marketing tool that can be used to assess the volume of supply and demand, get up-to-date price information and, most importantly, find new business partners. In Uzbekistan, as in Belarus, the closest attention is paid to the issues of localization of production and import substitution, therefore, if we manage to establish cooperation in this area, this will certainly contribute to the growth of trade between our countries,” said the Advisor to the Governor of Ferghana region on localization and industry Akmal Pulatov.

The talks also touched upon the problems of mediation and security of cross-border transactions, which are often faced by Uzbek and Belarusian companies engaged in foreign trade activities. In this regard, Alexei Matsevilo, Deputy Chairman of the Board of BUCE, noted that the system of transaction support and admission to trading implemented on the exchange floor allows minimizing possible risks for participants, both residents and non-residents of the Republic of Belarus.

“In addition to the fact that almost all potentially unscrupulous participants are eliminated at the stage of accreditation, the proper execution of exchange contracts is ensured through the use of a number of tools, such as settlements through exchange accounts or participation in trading with a deposit. As a result, the share of "problem" transactions that reach the Exchange Arbitration Commission has not exceeded 1% for many years. As for mediation, both direct manufacturers of goods and their marketing structures are represented on the exchange floor. Such a flexible approach to the admission of participants not only creates the necessary competitive environment, but also provides an opportunity to trade on the stock exchange even for small companies and individual entrepreneurs, with whom not all manufacturers are ready to work directly. In any case, we try to focus on customer requests, and if an Uzbek enterprise wants, say, to purchase Belarusian dairy products, sugar or lumber from a manufacturing plant, it can always do this,” the Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Exchange emphasized.