Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 6 / Trend A. Akhundov /
Italy, which is the largest importer of Azerbaijani products, intends to be among four countries exporting to Azerbaijan, Italian ambassador to Azerbaijan Mario Baldi said at the Azerbaijani-Italian business forum on Thursday.
"Italy ranks ninth among those countries exporting to Azerbaijan, but there are opportunities to increase the export of our products," Baldi said.
In 2011, trade turnover between the two countries totalled $9.6 billion, most of which has been ensured due to the export of oil and oil products to Italy.
He said the Italian embassy had increased visa issuance by 70 per cent in 2011. It is planned to issue up to 8000 visas in 2013.
Azerbaijani ambassador to Italy Vagif Sadigov said that Azerbaijan is interested in increasing the share of non-oil sector in the trade turnover.
"Embassy employees visit Italian regions, meet with businessmen and talk about job opportunities in Azerbaijan," Sadigov said. "Italian entrepreneurs from the country's most developed regions have expressed a willingness to visit Azerbaijan in the coming months."