MINSK, 27 March (BelTA) – Belarusian Prime Minister Andrei Kobyakov has left for Russia's St Petersburg on a two-day official visit, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian government.
Andrei Kobyakov will take part in the tenth session of the Business Cooperation Council of Belarus and St Petersburg on 28 March. The council is expected to discuss prospects of industrial cooperation and supplies of trucks, passenger vehicles, utility and road construction vehicles, food, and consumer goods to St Petersburg. The sides are going to exchange views on cooperation in medicine, science, and innovations, and also to discuss the progress in the implementation of “symmetrical” construction projects: the Belarusian residential district in St Peterburg and the St Petersburg project in Minsk.
Andrei Kobyakov is also scheduled to meet with St Petersburg Governor Georgy Poltavchenko and visit several events.
Belarus-St Petersburg trade reached $1.672 billion in 2017, up 19.7% from 2016. Exports stood at $967.4 million (up 18.6%), imports totaled $704.9% (up 21.2%). The trade balance of Minsk enjoyed a surplus of $262.5 million. The major export items were fresh and chilled beef, cheeses and quark, butter, poultry meat and by-products, milk, condensed cream, cream powder, trucks, and sugar. The major import items were cars, engines and electric generators, liquid pumps, pipe fittings, and construction materials from ferrous metals.
In January 2018, Belarus-St Petersburg trade totaled $125.9 million, up 24.7% from the same period a year prior. Exports amounted to $79.1 million (up 21.3%), imports made up $46.8 million (up 30.9%). The trade surplus was $32.3 million.
