Early this morning our group arrived in Uruguay, a couple hours later we ventured off to the World Trade Center in Montevideo. Being our first day in a new country, excitement was high despite the early wake up.
Alejandro Theodosopoulos, a lawyer who works in the WTC Free Zone legal department, gave us a talk today and answered a bunch of our questions.
Uruguay decided to become a free trade zone mainly to attract foreign investments. This allows companies to be totally exempt from taxes in the country. This frees them of double taxation, which is a huge advantage to companies. This free zone also does not make companies pay import dues. With these tax breaks, it convinces companies to work out of Uruguay, therefore helping the economy.
Many of the students in our group happen to be International Business Majors, including myself. We all paid close attention to this presentation as it was very informative to our future careers. This talk provided me with answers to many questions my classmates and I had. It is amazing to be able to get an inside perspective to someone who works in this building and deals with international trade everyday. Being able to connect and form relationships with these intelligent, well-rounded people is something none of us take for granted.
It was said that some of the top companies who take advantage of Uruguay’s free trade zone are financial, such as offshore banks and financial advisory services. This directly applies to the students on the trip studying finance. This gave the students a global perspective on the subject, opening their eyes to more than just domestic companies.
Going global and working in other countries is something that a lot of people fear. It is scary to experience the unfamiliar. But I believe today changed a lot of student’s perspectives. Many students today left questioning the normal and wanting to expand their horizons.
After the presentation, we got to experience something unexpected and beautiful. We had the opportunity to stand on the helicopter pad at the very top of the building. This view was absolutely breathtaking. Being able to see the city from a different perspective really showed us the beauty of this South American gem of a country.
This day in Montevideo is one that my classmates and I will not be forgetting. It gave us different perspectives, literally and physically.
-Hannah Sutton
SIE 2020, Latin America 