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Nordic investors visit Israel

Updated: 25/Jan/2006 17:25

Norway’s finance minister Kristin Halvorsen

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Scandinavian investment in Israel is expected to increase after representatives of the Nordic Venture Networking Association visited the country last week to examine investment opportunities and economic cooperation.

Members of the association from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden, made up of 12 venture capital funds that manage an aggregate 3 billion euros, met with their Israeli venture capital counterparts, economic leaders, public officials and even the country’s chief scientist.

The delegation of some 25 representatives included senior partners from leading Nordic technology venture firms as well as leading institutional investors.

The visit, sponsored by the Israel Export and International Cooperation Institute, Israel Venture Association, and Jerusalem Venture Partners, was organised in conjunction with Mordechai Ish-Shalom, Israeli Economic Affairs Minister to Sweden, Finland and Norway.

Positive trend

Ministry of Finance director general Dr. Joseph Bachar gave the visitors an optimistic and upbeat prediction of the investment scene in Israel. During a meeting with the delegation, Bachar said: “The growth we see today is sustainable, because it’s led by the business sector, not the public sector. It’s therefore reasonable to assume that the positive trend will continue in 2006.”

The visit was kept quiet until the last minute because of a recent upsurge in anti-Israel feeling in some parts of Scandinavia.

These included recent calls for a boycott of Israeli products from Norwegian finance minister Kristin Halvorsen and, during the Intifada, there were calls in Denmark and Sweden for an economic boycott of Israel.

Scandinavian cooperation

This is the first time a Scandinavian venture capital delegation has visited Israel. According to Globes, an Israeli business magazine, Israeli sources are predicting that the visit will lead to closer ties in between banking systems and investment institutions, and will later boost bilateral trade.

Israel and the Scandinavian region are both leaders in the Information technology sector and house a high level of entrepreneurial expertise. Israeli exports to Scandinavia totaled 330 million euros in 2005, and imports from Scandinavia to Israel totaled over 740 million euros.