(by Cristiana Missori)
(ANSA) - TRIESTE, MAR 18 - ''We want to invest more in the
Adriatic-Baltic axis, improve rail link between Austria,
Carinthia, and Friuli Venezia Giulia''. That is what the vice
president of the Austrian Federal Chamber of Economy, Jurgen
Roth, Jurgen Roth, said at the conference ''Trieste City-Port:
300 years of free port''. The meeting opened the celebrations
for the foundation of the Free Port, recalling the close ties
between Austria and Italy.
The trade between the two countries totaled almost 20 billion
euros (up 5.6%) in 2018. Austrian export to Italy, Roth
underlined, ''grew by 4.7 %, reaching 9.8bn euros; Italian
exports to Austria reached 9.9bn euros. Italy is our second-
biggest trading partner after Germany and also the trade volume
between Fvg and Austria has good results''. In this context, the
past and present of the port of Trieste are intertwined. Since
the reign of the far-sighted Emperor Charles VI, who established
the Free Port on March 18, 1719, Austria intends to play a
leading role. ''The port of Trieste is a great opportunity for
bilateral growth. There are 25 Austrian companies interested in
investing in the port of Trieste'', said Roth.
Zeno D'Agostino, president of the Port System Authority of
the Eastern Adriatic Sea (Trieste), announced the signing of two
memoranda of understanding with the Austrian Railways, OEBB, and
Rail Cargo Austria (RCA), this afternoon at the Authority's
headquarters.
The president of the Land Carinthia, Peter Kaiser, pointed
out that ''Austria and Carinthia aim to strengthen the link with
Italy but also the duty-free areas'' and the Austrian Railways
CEO, Andreas Mattha, promised: ''My goal is also to establish
direct rail links between the Fvg area and Vienna''. The
honorary consul of Austria for the Fvg, Sabrina Strolego, said
that ''Trieste is undoubtedly a point of reference for Austria
and for all of Central Europe, the East and beyond''. The trade
between Fvg and the neighboring country recorded a balance of
around 1.3bn euros in 2018, supported by a good performance of
Fvg exports, totaling about 92m euros (up 12%). (ANSA).
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