Details added (first version posted on 11:45)
Baku, Azerbaijan, Dec. 1
By Maksim Tsurkov, Anvar Mammadov – Trend:
The US invested $10 billion in Azerbaijan's economy, the country’s Deputy Economy Minister Sahil Babayev said.
He made the remarks Dec. 1 during the first Azerbaijan-US business forum “Trade and investment opportunities in post-oil era” being held in Baku.
The event is organized by the American Chamber of Commerce in Azerbaijan (AmCham) with the support of the US Embassy in Baku and Azerbaijan’s Embassy in Washington.
“Azerbaijan’s oil sector alone received investments worth $9 billion,” Babayev said. “The volume of investments is constantly increasing, and this shows a favorable investment climate in our country. Azerbaijani investments in the US economy are about $3 billion, and they are mainly invested through the line of the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ).”
He added that there are long-term economic relations between Azerbaijan and the US, and these relations can be called strategic.
He noted that Azerbaijan hopes to attract US investment in the non-oil sector as well, and to diversify their directions.
“It is regrettable that only 10 percent of the US investments are directed to Azerbaijan’s non-oil sector,” Babayev said. “We hope that in the future we will attract the US investments in other sectors of the Azerbaijani economy as well.”
---
Follow the author on Twitter: @MaksimTsurkov