Investors are looking for Valencian SMEs to finance their expansion in the U.S.
NdG are one of latest funds to invest in local industry after breaking into the real estate sector.
Despite the protectionist drift led by Donald Trump, the United States continues to be a priority market for Valencian companies, which have doubled their exports since the outbreak of the economic crisis. But for most SMEs, opening up a niche in the largest economy in the West is no easy task. So far, primarily focused on real estate opportunities, the investment fund manager Net de Gerrers (NdG) aims to help SMEs in Valencia who aspire to cross the Atlantic Ocean with two new products, the first directed to the industrial sector.
The two lines of action in which the investment group works would replicate the system already successfully proven in the real estate field, as explained by its CEO, Eduard Navarro, who participated yesterday in a conference of the Chamber of Valencia on the changes that have occurred in the U.S. after the change in the White House. The idea is to offer San Francisco and London investors a stake in the capital of small but emerging firms.
These venture capital operations would be combined with a second fund focused on larger, consolidated companies that show an interest in positioning themselves in the US market. The project is not closed, but NdG is already working in this direction. "We can't talk about deadlines, we have to keep up with the pace of our investors", explained Navarro, who developed his professional career in the USA.
Net de Gerrers works side by side with large investment funds in search of business opportunities in Spain: "We are an extension of themselves. We are their face and their eyes here," he insisted. Along these lines, the CEO of the investment group identifies four areas that may be attractive for its international clients.
The manufacturing sector (such as textiles, capital goods, wood industry or footwear) is one of them, but also the logistics sector - he recalled the importance of the port of Valencia, the largest in the Mediterranean and the main maritime connection with the United States - and the fintech sector, which brings together new companies that contribute technology to financial processes. For Eduard Navarro, the great concentration of the banking sector feeds the emergence of new players in order to diversify this market.
The truth is that NdG is already an active agent in the Spanish real estate sector, where it has taken part in judicial auctions of real estate and has partnered with local developers to develop homes and finish developments paralysed by the financial crisis. In the Valencian Community it has completed many projects, with more underway.
DISTRUST AMONG ENTREPRENEURS
Five months without major changes
Donald Trump's first five months as president of the United States have barely changed U.S. trade policy. Although his speech is based on a protectionist twist, Trump's action is still very limited, according to Gemma Cortijo, director of the Spain-U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Today only 11 of the 124 key positions in the State Department have been appointed. Although Cortijo does not foresee a great change of course, the businessmen did show their doubts about whether or not to invest in this country.
Super tariffs' and tax reform
The US Administration is considering the introduction of taxes against some EU states, while the Republicans are contemplating a tax reform that would penalise imports.
INDUSTRIES EIGHTA CANNOT FIND WORKERS
The unemployment rate has barely fallen below 20% but some companies are already finding it difficult to cover certain professional profiles. This is the case of Ochoa industries, one of the auxiliary firms in the automotive sector, which has a staff deficit, as warned yesterday the general director of the company, Domingo Ochoa. The Valencian group, which has a production center in Mexico, acknowledged that it is experiencing difficulties in meeting the growing needs of staff, both for highly qualified professional positions, as for other job categories. Especially when an extra training period is required. On the other hand, the president of Cámara Valencia, José Vicente Morata, announced yesterday that he will celebrate next November a meeting with American investors in the city of Valencia.