GULF FIX NOT MAKING FAST BUCKS

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: THURSDAY, February 13, 1992                   TAG: 9202130051
SECTION: BUSINESS                    PAGE: B-5   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: GEORGE KEGLEY BUSINESS EDITOR
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Medium
GULF FIX NOT MAKING FAST BUCKS
A year after American warplanes destroyed much of the Persian Gulf region's industrial base, some Western Virginia companies are finding opportunities in rebuilding it.
The relationship of U.S. companies with the half-dozen Arab countries "is really quite solid," said Martin Briley, director of the Middle East Trade Program of the state Department of Economic Development. "They are looking for U.S. products."
He spoke Wednesday to a luncheon meeting of the International Trade Association of Western Virginia at the Roanoke Airport Marriott hotel.
Companies such as Bassett Furniture Industries, Harvey Hubbell Lighting and Gala Industries in Botetourt County already are exporting to the Middle East and Briley said there are "great opportunities" there for others.
Some of the biggest markets are for U.S. auto parts, electric motors, pharmaceutical products, aircraft, and agricultural and medical equipment, he said.
On a trip last fall, Briley said, he found a beehive of activity among the 93 U.S. companies competing in Kuwait. But the heralded $100 billion program to rebuild Kuwait has been reduced to about $25 billion, because the wartime damage to the country was not as great as first thought, he said.
There is a market, he said, but this is not a place to make a quick buck. U.S. exporters need a business representative on the site, Briley added.
Hugh Henderson, a Lexington export trade consultant, warned that U.S. companies should be "exceedingly cautious" in selecting an agent because each agent may represent 50 to 500 companies. It's easy to have conflicts of interest, he added.
"You don't know if the guy will sell your product or just use your name," Briley said.
The business climate in the gulf a year after the war is quite good for the U.S., he said, but there are barriers faced in Mideast trade, such as different standards for products, delayed payments and patent infringement.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB