Welcome to Global Business!
Global Business Associates, Inc. is here to insure that your business succeeds in the global marketplace.
The opportunities for your business to succeed in the global marketplace have never been better than they are today. Modern transportation and communication technologies are significantly lowering barriers that, up until a few years ago, prevented many medium and smaller businesses from competing effectively on the global business stage.
Global Business Associates (GBA), Inc., is an open gateway to valuable business opportunities in the global market for small and mid-size companies based in America's traditional industrial heartland. Our team of professionals have wide experience, especially in East Asia, Southeast Asia, and in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.
Founded in Ann Arbor, Michigan, GBA is a multi-faceted business consulting firm with a focus on connecting future-looking companies in the American midwest with like-minded partners around the world. GBA assists small and mid-size companies in selling their products and services abroad by offering professional business and translation services, while also organizing informative seminars in our home region and profitable trade missions abroad.
At this time on our web site we are highlighting the highly-profitable Middle East and North Africa region.
The Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region
The Arab oil countries of Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Qatar are among the Arab Gulf countries that have rich import-export markets fueled by wealth-generating petroleum and natural gas resources. These countries are part of the wider MENA region, a highly attractive marketplace for businesses and governments around the world.
News headlines are filled with stories about conflict and insecurity in the Middle East. These problems are to a large extent limited to Iraq and the occupied Palestinian territories where dreams of stability and economic prosperity unfortunately remain unfulfilled. However, valuable opportunities for new business ventures and partnerships abound in other countries of the region. Foreign companies that participate in these opportunities have a significant impact in not only in creating wealth, but also in fostering greater understanding and stability in the region.
Recently China, Russia, Japan, the European Union, and countries in South America have been sending delegations, sponsoring trade conferences, and signing trade agreements with a number of countries in MENA. One of the more recent events was the Arab-South American Summit held in Brazil in May 2005.
Continued high oil prices have brought enormous financial gains to the countries of the Arab Gulf. Unlike in the past when Gulf state leaders invested in the West, much of their wealth now remains inside the Gulf region. Dubai in the United Arab Emirates has become a dynamic new financial center in the world economy. In addition, most MENA countries have adopted significant new political and legal reforms, creating higher economic growth rates that are expected to continue for years to come.
The United States plays a leading role in the Arab Gulf and wider MENA region. The U.S. government has strong economic relationships with the vast majority of Arab countries. Free trade agreements already exist with Jordan, Morocco, and Bahrain, and negotiations are underway with Egypt, Qatar and Oman. While major American corporations have solid opportunities to build on their investments inside the region, most small and medium-size U.S. companies have not yet been able to capitalize on these positive economic policies and incentives.
Surveys in MENA countries consistently show that Arab consumers value American products and services due to their higher quality and advanced technology. Arab business owners actively seek commercial relations with partners in the United States. Thus, despite common misperceptions about the MENA region, small and mid-size American businesses have real market opportunities in this vital region of the world.
Global Business Associates, Inc., can be your bridge to a future of economic growth, so please consider attending one of our business seminars in your area and join us on our trade mission to the Arab Gulf region in 2009!