Summary:
According to Minister of Foreign Trade Kai Mykkänen, the trade between Finland and Russia is recovering. Exports are growing and the number of visas granted to Russian tourists has clearly increased from last year. However, the Minister is concerned over Russia’s increasingly strong import substitution policy. When it comes to state-owned companies, Russia is breaching its World Trade Organisation commitments. Mr Mykkänen is to discuss the issue with Russian colleagues and adds that also EU and Russia should discuss it. Minister Mykkänen says that though the Russian economy is growing slightly, no boom is expected, which means that the superpower ideology continues to dominate after next spring’s election in Russia.

Summary:
Wärtsilä delivers technology to Africa’s largest solar power plant, which is built in Nigeria, and produces power to more than one million people. According to Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen, the deal is a significant for Finland in the framework of renewable energy. Mr Mykkänen says that the expectations on Africa’s economic growth for the next few years are great. He was positively surprised by the success of Finnish companies during the export promotion trip to Nigeria and Ghana.

Media:  Iltalehti
Date: 17.11.2017
Journalist: Kreeta Karvala
Main source: Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen

Summary:
According to the Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen, they are currently updating the tax policy for the Finnish development fund Finnfund. Yle reported on Monday that Finnfund’s funds have circulated through the Cayman Islands, known as a tax haven. Mr Mykkänen said that Finnfund can no longer use structures, which imply aggressive tax planning. As a rule, Finnfund is steered towards direct investments in the target countries, but when there is no other way to get partner investors, they can use a controlled organisation in another country, but it cannot avoid taxes.

Summary:
Kepa has studied Finland’s climate funding: in its new report is says that the funding has crashed. Usually the funding for climate work comes from development aid. The same applies to Finland, and the cut in development aid made a few years ago also affected climate funding. Minister for Development Kai Mykkänen says that the Ministry for Foreign Affairs has found that climate issues are decisive in development work and therefore they invest in it. « As we don’t have more money, we get more done, for example, through investments in renewable energy. » The money has increasingly been directed towards the poorest countries, where the need for energy is growing.

Summary:
The European Commission has proposed that EU would investigate acquisitions in so called fragile sectors such as infrastructure and energy. France supports the idea, Finland does not. The issue was discussed by Ministers for Foreign Trade, Kai Mykkänen and Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne in Paris. Mr Mykkänen says they agreed on many issues but not on the acquisitions. He finds it most important that no additional bureaucracy is included in acquisitions. Mr Mykkänen emphasises that the success of Finnish companies often requires a foreign investor’s contribution.

Media:  YLE Uutiset
Date: 25.10.2017
Journalist: Anna Karismo
Main source: Minister Kai Mykkänen

Summary:
Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen believes that the biggest risk from the viewpoint of Finland’s economic recovery is the threat of a trade war. « We cannot afford to get stuck in protectionism, » he adds. Particularly a trade war between the US and China could paralyse world economy. Regardless of the hard talk between the US and China, Mr Mykkänen believes that the countries are able to settle their disputes. Protectionism also poses a risk to the world economic growth.

Media:  Turun Sanomat
Date: 4.10.2017
Journalist: STT, Olli Kuivaniemi
Main source: Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen

Summary:
A lunch event was organised for American investors during the UN week for presenting Finnish startup companies to them. Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen says investors were given tips on how to find Finnish startups they can invest in and help to expand abroad. He estimates that the fairly rigid labour market in Finland, and other Nordic countries, may be one challenge from a foreign investor’s perspective. Mr Mykkänen points out that a Scandinavian way of thinking seems to be in fashion in the United States and that Finnish companies are starting to be ready to market things even in the US.

Summary:
Opposition parties in the Finnish parliament attacked the government’s low development co-operation funding during the parliamentary debate on next year’s budget on 26 September. Opposition MPs made several questions to Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Kai Mykkänen regarding how the government plans to raise the share of development co-operation funds to the long-term goal of 0.7% of GDP. In next year’s budget the share is 0.38%. Mr Mykkänen could not promise that the government would raise development co-operation funding in the near future to the extent that the goal would be reached. He noted that the Finnish state is spending more money than it is earning also in the near future and only after this development is stopped can any significant increases to development co-operation be made.