The U.S.-Poland Business Summit Warsaw 2012 took place on June 20, 2012 at Copernicus Science Center in Warsaw and was a major international trade and investment event.
In a ceremony of the Offcial Opening took part:
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Waldemar Pawlak, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Economy of Poland,
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Francisco J. Sanchez, U.S. Undersecretary of Commerce for International Trade,
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Ilona Antoniszyk-Klik, Undersecretary of State, Ministry of Economy of Poland,
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Lee A. Feinstein, United States Amassador to Poland,
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Henryka Bochniarz, President, Polish Confederation of Private Employers Lewiatan,
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Eric Steward, President U.S.-Poland Business Council,
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Joseph Wancer, Chairman, American Chamber of Commerce in Poland.
After CEO Keynote given by Wolf Regener, President and CEO, BNK Petroleum Inc. took place a plenary session “Trade & Investment between Poland and the U.S” and then a few parallel panel discussions:
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Select USA: Promoting Investement and Trade in the U.S., The Potential for Clean Energy Sources in Poland’s Energy Mix, Manufacturing and Export in Poland,
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Select Poland: Promoting Investement and Trade in Poland, Evaluation of Shale Gas Exploration Progress in Poland, Tapping into the Creative Economy.
Just before the official closing the distinguished guests had the opportunity to take part in Summit Roundtable and Sigining Ceremony.
I had the pleasure to took part also in two business panels: Select USA: Promoting Investement and Trade in the U.S. and Select Poland: Promoting Investement and Trade Poland. The main theme was, of course, Polish-American Economic Cooperation 2012 and beyond.
Select USA: Promoting Investement and Trade in the U.S.
The United States is the world’s largest FDI recipient. The U.S. has launched a new effort through the Select USA program to encourage more foreign direct investement in the United Stataes and promote trade. The transatlantic relationship is strong-the U.S. and the EU remain each other most important markets. The U.S. and EU are each other’s primary source and destination for FDI, helping to generate $5 trillion in annual commercial sales and employing 15 million workers on both sides of the Atlantic. Poland’s GDP growth over the past five years is creating opportunities for increased Polsih investment in the U.S. however most outbound investement form Polish companies flows to other EU or CIS nations. This panel discussed effective strategies employed by successful Polish investors in the U.S., and programs available to Polsih companies to help them invest in the U.S.
Select Poland: Promoting Investement and Trade in the Poland
American companies have been important contributors to Poland’s free market economy and were among the first and stronegest foreign direct investors in Poland. Since 1989, there has been continuous increase in the scope of American investment in Poland, reaching over $20 billion. U.S. investors employ over 180, 000 Poles and American investment in the wholesale, finance, chemical, mining, IT, automotive and defense sectors help link Poland to global supply chains. Yet, U.S.-Poland bilateral trade amounted to only $8.5 billion. Clearly there is potential for increasing U.S.-Poland bilateral investment and therefore increasing trade remains. But is Poland doing enough to promote itself? Are Polish government programs, investment missions, trade fairs, and diplomatic posts sufficiently effective in promoting Poland and providing aid to companies seeking partners and international assistance? The invited panelists tried to explain every aspect of the above mentioned issues.
