Masami Nagano

PRESIDENT, ITOCHU ECUADOR

Itochu has been operating in Ecuador for four decades. Can you tell us more about the company’s activities here and in Japan?

Itochu is a large Japanese corporation whose main business is the automotive industry. It has a strong relationship with General Motors across the world. The company is present in other regions outside of Japan, such as Latin America and Africa. Our operations in Ecuador are also focused on the food sector, where we identify Ecuadorian products that can be exported. For instance, Ecuador is a large cacao producer, and we export that to Japan. These two businesses, cacao exports and automotive, are our core businesses at the moment; however, we see more potential in the country.

What other business opportunities have you seen in Ecuador?

We have a wide range of imports that varies from diapers and chemical products to food and beverages. However, I expect an important development in the mining industry and in crude oil in Ecuador. Now, we are in the preliminary phase of exploring mining sites, so we do not have yet plans for production. Itochu counts on some operations of coal mining in Colombia. As for the oil sector, Itochu wants to enter the business of trading and subsequently explore production opportunities. We want to become stronger in exports and other investments in Ecuador. The most important sectors for the future are oil and mining.