Iceland steps up push for export markets in the US and Asia

Iceland should work to secure better access to foreign markets for its businesses, says Viðreisn chair Þorgerður Katrín Gunnarsdóttir in an opinion article published by Morgunblaðið. She points to recent visits and talks in the United States and Asia as part of that effort.

Gunnarsdóttir says free trade and access to international markets are key to growth and value creation, particularly for a small, export-driven economy such as Iceland. She argues that securing market access and protecting Icelandic interests in global trade should be priorities for the government.

In early October, she hosted US Secretary of State Marco Rubio during his visit to Iceland. Their discussions covered security and defence as well as ways to strengthen trade, including cooperation on pharmaceuticals, medical products and tourism. They also agreed to begin broad economic consultations involving companies and investors from both countries. Follow-up talks are under way, and she says there is strong interest in closer cooperation with Icelandic businesses.

She later led a delegation of Icelandic companies to Minneapolis with the American-Icelandic Chamber of Commerce and Business Iceland. The group visited the headquarters of major US companies and met representatives of Icelandic innovation company Neckcare, which has made progress in the US market. The company’s solution, based on Icelandic expertise and developed with American partners, has improved the lives and health of thousands of customers, she writes.

The United States is Iceland’s largest single export market. Gunnarsdóttir says Iceland has protected its interests there despite uncertainty and disruption in global trade, crediting focused advocacy with US authorities.

In Vietnam, she signed a new free trade agreement between the EFTA states and Vietnam on Iceland’s behalf. She describes Vietnam as a fast-growing market of 100 million, with opportunities for Icelandic exporters, particularly in fisheries and geothermal energy. Vietnam has a strong fishing industry and significant underused geothermal resources, she says.

EFTA states have 36 free trade agreements covering 51 countries. The European Economic Area agreement also gives Iceland access to the internal market of 30 countries. Together, the agreements provide access to markets with nearly five billion inhabitants, Gunnarsdóttir writes.

She ended the month with a visit to Qingdao, a Chinese port city, leading an Icelandic fisheries delegation.