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Education Trade Mission Builds Ties Between United States and Central Europe

April 13, 2012

Adam Wilczewski is Chief of Staff at the International Trade Administration.

This week 12 regionally accredited U.S. academic institutions will take part in the first-of-its-kind education trade mission to Poland and the Czech Republic. The trade mission, which I will have the opportunity to lead, is part of a larger effort to increase the number of foreign students studying in the United States.

According to Times Higher Education, the United States is home to more than 4,000 accredited higher education institutions, and 14 of the top 20 universities in the world. Furthermore, the Institute of International Education reports there are more international students (in excess of 723,000) studying at U.S. institutions than anywhere else in the world.

(Photo iStock/Steve Shepard)

U.S. colleges and universities, such as those on this mission, place a prime importance on keeping their campuses internationally diverse, so that students can gain the most rewarding educational experience possible. And recent developments show that there is both great interest and opportunities for U.S. colleges and universities to recruit students from both Poland and the Czech Republic.

With the passage of new legislation last October, Poland is streamlining the education process—thereby raising educational standards that may further increase interest in study abroad programs such as those in the United States. Poland also has a high concentration of young students with keen interest in higher education. The country’s population of 38 million includes more than 5.5 million young people from 15 to 24 years of age, including 1.9 million students. Moreover, Polish students have a strong affinity toward the United States, and English is the first choice for a second language by almost all high school and university students.

Similarly, the number of Czech students with outstanding English language skills continues to outpace many of their neighbors in the region, improving the ability of Czech students to study at U.S. universities and colleges. And current exchange rates and the visa waiver program are making U.S. educational opportunities an increasingly attractive alternative.

Recognizing these trends points to the eagerness of the educational institutions from across the country to join me on this trade mission.

During the trade mission, our delegation will participate in student recruitment fairs in Prague and Warsaw to connect with students from European universities, secondary schools, and businesses. Trade professionals from the U.S. Department of Commerce based abroad will also be on hand to facilitate networking opportunities and meetings between our delegation and prominent Czech and Polish universities.

We look forward to visiting Warsaw and Prague, and with this, the goal of opening new doors of opportunity and cultural understanding for the next generation. By furthering the avenues to higher learning, we are also supporting economic growth both at home and abroad – and that is something to write home about.

Posted in Commercial Service, Services, Trade Missions | Tagged Education | Leave a Comment »

International Tourism Spending in 2011 Supported 103,000 Additional Tourism-Related Jobs

March 21, 2012

This post contains external links. Please review our external linking policy.

Nicole Y. Lamb-Hale is the Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Services

We always know when it’s Spring in Washington, D.C. – the city comes alive with our glorious cherry blossom trees (celebrating their 100th anniversary this year with an extended National Cherry Blossom Festival, having been gifted to the United States by Japan in 1912) – and we begin to see the “annual migration” of hundreds of groups who come to the nation’s capital to participate in educational, leisure, and business events, taking in the beautiful sights while they’re here.

Tourists enjoy the annual cherry blossoms along the Tidal Basin (Photo Destination DC)

For some, the visitors are viewed as an annoyance because they crowd the subways and sidewalks, as well as daily lunch spots and favorite shops. For others of us, however, we welcome them with open arms, right along with the arrival of the cherry blossoms and the warmer weather. In particular, we welcome our international visitors, who, last year, spent $153 billion dollars while visiting the United States.

62 million international visitors came to the United States in 2011, an increase of 2.5 million over 2010. These 62 million visitors spent 14 percent more on travel and tourism-related goods and services last year than in 2010. Their spending supported an additional 103,000 travel and tourism industry jobs!

These figures come on the heels of President Obama’s January 19th announcement implementing new initiatives to significantly increase travel and tourism in the United States. The industry plays a vital role in supporting a robust economy and should be recognized for the positive impacts it makes.

As part of the initiatives to increase travel and tourism in the United States, President Obama created a Task Force for Travel and Competitiveness last month to build on this momentum and continue to create jobs.

In the announcement, the President charged our Secretary of Commerce, John Bryson, and Interior Department Secretary Ken Salazar with developing recommendations for a National Travel and Tourism Strategy to promote domestic and international travel opportunities throughout the U.S., thereby expanding job creation for our industry.

The Task Force is primarily focused on strategies for increasing tourism and recreation jobs by promoting visits to our national treasures; our national parks, wild refuges, cultural and historic sites, monuments and other public lands that can attract travelers from around the country and the globe.

As part of those efforts, Commerce’s International Trade Administration supplies the travel and tourism industry with important data, including international arrivals to the U.S., the forecast of international travel to America for over 30 countries, and estimates of the total impact of travel and tourism on the economy, among others.

In December 2011 alone, international visitors spent $12.6 billion on travel to, and tourism-related activities within, the United States, which is a 9 percent increase over December 2010. Travel and tourism-related exports increased, on average, more than $1.5 billion a month in 2011.

Instead of viewing our guests as a nuisance to be avoided, I’d recommend saying “thank you” to the next group of visitors you encounter. They’re helping support your friends and neighbors through their spending, and they’re helping us all continue to bolster the economy!

To learn more about Commerce’s efforts to increase travel to the United States, please visit the Office of Travel and Tourism Industries.

Posted in Competitiveness, Manufacturing and Services, Services, Trade Data, Travel & Tourism | Tagged International visitors, task force for travel and competitiveness | Leave a Comment »

Jobs Supported by Exports Surge by 1.2 million

March 14, 2012

Martin Johnson and Chris Rasmussen are Senior Economists in the Office of Industry Analysis within the International Trade Administration

For the first time in U.S. history annual exports of goods and services crossed the $2 trillion threshold exceeding $2.1 trillion in 2011. This increase in exports builds on the strong growth in 2010, and in 2011 exports of U.S. goods and services were up over 33 percent from 2009. This growth in exports corresponded with growth in jobs supported by U.S. exports.

We estimate that in 2011 jobs supported by exports increased to 9.7 million in 2011, up 1.2 million since 2009. While the total value of U.S. exports set an all time record in 2011, jobs supported by exports in 2011 were just shy of the 2008 peak of 9.8 million. In 2011, every billion dollars of U.S. exports supported 5,080 jobs.

Traditionally we think of export oriented jobs as those engaged in making and transporting goods, like at ports, rail, trucks, and manufacturing facilities, as well as at customs brokers and freight forwarders.

However, jobs all along the supply chain of both manufacturing and service industries are captured in this estimate. That means that all of the people who make and install parts that eventually end up in large equipment or small electronics sold abroad are included in this estimate.

In addition, people who are involved in exporting services, such as legal and financial services and travel and tourism are also included.

While your company may not export directly, if you sell products or services to one that does, you are part of this overall export equation.

Posted in Competitiveness, Exporting, Manufacturing, Services, Statistics, Supply Chain | Tagged exports support jobs, jobs | 1 Comment »

Trade Finance Guide: Now Online, with User-Friendly Features!

March 13, 2012

Natalie Soroka is an Economist on detail with Manufacturing and Services’ Trade and Project Finance Team, a part of the Office of Financial Services Industries.

Let’s face it, for a new exporter, figuring out trade finance options can be daunting. With so many options available it can be hard to know where to even start (just what is forfaiting, anyway?).

Luckily, the Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration publishes the Trade Finance Guide: A Quick Reference for U.S. Exporters. The Guide is designed to help U.S. companies, especially small and medium-sized businesses, learn the basic fundamentals of trade finance so that they can turn their export opportunities into actual sales and achieve every business’s ultimate goal: getting paid.

Until recently, the Trade Finance Guide was only available in print form (by order) or in a series of PDF files off of a variety of sites. However, now these concise chapters are available on the web, allowing you to click through the entire guide, or navigate to a specific chapter based on your personal interest.

Quick, easy-to-read chapters cover topics such as the various methods of payment available in international trade, export working capital financing, export credit insurance, and yes, forfaiting.

In addition to covering the basics, the guide also notes where to go for more information, training, and who to contact with questions about trade finance, the guide itself, and partners who collaborated with the Commerce Department in creating the Trade Finance Guide.

For more information, just check it out yourself! The most recent version of the Trade Finance Guide is available on export.gov, at http://www.export.gov/tradefinanceguide

Be sure to check back for updates, as the Guide is revised from time to time. Future editions will include new chapters that discuss other trade finance techniques and related topics.

Posted in Exporting, Finance, International Trade Administration, Services | Tagged trade finance guide | 1 Comment »

How U.S. Companies Can Start Taking Advantage of the U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement

March 6, 2012

The Office of Japan and Korea within the Market Access and Compliance unit of the International Trade Administration assists U.S. firms that are encountering trade and investment barriers in Japan and Korea.

The U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement will enter into force on March 15, 2012.

What does that mean for our companies – both those who are already doing business in Korea as well as those who are considering entering the Korean market for the first time? How can companies ensure that their products will receive preferential treatment on or after March 15?

On the first day the agreement takes effect, March 15 of this year, almost 80 percent of U.S. exports to Korea of consumer and industrial products can be imported duty-free. Nearly 95 percent of remaining tariffs will be eliminated within 5 years after that date, and most remaining tariffs will be eliminated within 10 years.

A web-based resource created by the International Trade Administration, the FTA Tariff Tool, is a great way to see if your product would benefit under the agreement. The database conveniently links to the latest U.S. tariff schedule and relevant rules of origin, helping you to determine the exact tariff benefit for your product and the rate at which the tariff is eliminated.

Additionally, nearly two-thirds of all U.S. exports of agricultural products to Korea will become duty-free starting March 15. This agreement also includes a number of significant non-tariff commitments that will come into force on March 15, including obligations to be transparent when developing and passing new regulations and laws that affect bilateral trade.

Commitments on strengthened protections for intellectual property rights benefiting American creators and innovators will also come into force on that day. Finally, commitments opening Korea’s $580 billion services market will also be in effect beginning March 15.

To ensure that your company’s product will benefit under the agreement, you will need to determine that the product is originating in either the territory of the United States or Korea under the rules of the agreement, and claim U.S.-Korea trade agreement benefits when importing.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will soon publicly release implementation instructions and interim regulations regarding U.S. imports under the agreement. Importers should closely monitor CBP’s FTA website and send inquiries on U.S. imports directly to fta@dhs.gov.

For more information, you can also contact your local U.S. Export Assistance Center and the U.S. Commercial Service at the American Embassy in Seoul, Korea.

The International Trade Administration’s U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement Portal should be your next stop!

Posted in Competitiveness, Exporting, Korea-US Trade, Manufacturing, Services | Tagged FTA Tariff Tool, trade agreements | 6 Comments »

Port of Baltimore Partners With India’s Mundra Port To Expand Exports, Trade

February 23, 2012

David McCormack is an International Trade Specialist in the U.S. Foreign and Commercial Service. Russell Adise is an International Trade Specialist in the Office of Service Industries.

On February 22, Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Francisco Sánchez witnessed the signing of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between two major world ports – the U.S.’ Port of Baltimore and India’s Mundra Port – that will facilitate maritime cooperation, exports and trade flows between the U.S. and India.

The two-way trade between India and the U.S. grew to $58 billion in 2011, and this upward trend is expected to continue in 2012. This MOU is a perfect example of the U.S. and India working together to meet India’s infrastructure needs while supporting American jobs.

Sister port MoU signed between the Port of Baltimore and the Adani Group’s Mundra Port. U.S. Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade, Francisco Sánchez witnessed the signing of the MoU in Ahmedabad. (photo American Center Mumbai)

For U.S. seaports, sister port partnerships are an important tool for expanding their trade links, trade routes, port marketing, and infrastructure development activities throughout the world. The Port of Baltimore’s new agreement with Mundra Port follows similar agreements with ports in Taiwan, Poland, China, Russia, Italy, Ghana, Egypt, The Netherlands, and France, illustrating Baltimore’s importance as an international trade port.

U.S. seaports are a critical conduit for U.S. exports. More than $455 billion in exports flowed through America’s sea ports in 2010. Ocean transport carries more U.S. international merchandise than air cargo, trucks, railroads, and pipelines combined. More than 75 percent of U.S. merchandise trade by volume – and more than 36 percent by value – leaves the United States by water, making U.S. seaports a critical component of our national and global economy.

In addition to their participation in the Trade Mission, U.S. seaports such as Baltimore are also partners in an important ITA initiative aimed at meeting the President’s NEI goals. In July 2011, Under Secretary Sánchez traveled to the Port of Oakland to launch the Partnership with America’s Seaports to Further the National Export Initiative. This partnership between ITA and the American Association of Port Authorities is helping U.S. seaports to leverage federal and local resources to help small and medium-sized firms to achieve export sales.

Under Secretary Sánchez is in Ahmedabad for the second stop of the Department’s first-ever Ports and Maritime Technology Industry Trade Mission to India. This Trade Mission is furthering President Obama’s National Export Initiative (NEI) by raising the profile of the U.S.’ world-leading ports and maritime technology sector among Indian commercial counterparts.
The trade mission participants include dredging companies, port security companies, scanning technology providers, and transportation and logistics companies. The Port of Baltimore is one of twelve U.S. private sector and municipal organizations participating in the trade mission, which will conclude in Mumbai on February 24.

The Trade Mission is the first in a series of events planned for 2012 that are designed to expand U.S. export opportunities within India’s infrastructure sectors. In particular, Commerce Secretary John Bryson will lead a high-level trade mission to Delhi, Jaipur, and Mumbai on March 25-30. It will be Bryson’s first trade mission as Commerce Secretary.

For more information on the Trade Mission, please contact Trade Specialist David McCormack at david.mccormack@trade.gov, (202) 482-2833.

Additional information on the Trade Mission can be found on the India Ports Trade Mission’s website.

For more information on the ITA-AAPA Partnership With America’s Seaports to Further the National Export Initiative, please visit the Partnership’s website or contact Trade Specialist Russell Adise at Russell.Adise@trade.gov, (202) 482-5086.

Posted in Commercial Service, Competitiveness, Exporting, Manufacturing and Services, Services, Trade Missions | Tagged infrastructure, Ports | Leave a Comment »

SelectUSA Brings Investment and Jobs to the United States

January 25, 2012

Barry Johnson is the executive director of SelectUSA and Aaron Brickman is the deputy executive director of SelectUSA

Did you see President Obama’s call to action to invest in America and boost job creation? Well if you missed it check out the White House blog post. Also at the forum, Commerce Secretary John Bryson moderated a panel discussion highlighting foreign direct investment (FDI) as an important source of economic and job growth in the United States.

Currently, the United States is the largest recipient of FDI in the world. In 2010, FDI into the U.S. economy increased to $228 billion from $153 billion in 2009.While the United States has enjoyed this leadership position for decades, the share of FDI to the United States is decreasing. In the 1980s the FDI in the United States accounted for nearly 45 percent of the all foreign direct investment. Today, the United States accounts for less than 15 percent of total FDI flows.

At the Department of Commerce’s International Trade Administration (ITA) we are working to promote foreign direct investment in the United States because it is significantly impacts U.S. exports and jobs. U.S. subsidiaries of foreign companies are responsible for about 21 percent of all U.S. exports and support more than 5.3 million U.S. jobs – that’s about 5 percent of all U.S. employment!

Since taking office, the President has emphasized the unequivocal policy of openness to both foreign and domestic companies that invest in America. SelectUSA, which is housed within ITA, was created by President Obama in 2011 through an Executive Order to promote business investment in the United States.

The United States provides an ideal landscape for companies to build and grow their business. As the President reminded us, “companies are choosing to invest in the one country with the most productive workers, best universities, and most creative and innovative entrepreneurs in the world: the United States of America.”

And there is more. SelectUSA promotes the benefits of investing in the United States, including a strong system of intellectual property rights protection; unparalleled global access through trade agreements representing access to nearly 610 million worldwide consumers; and nearly 36 percent of global research and development expenditures taking place in the United States.

SelectUSA works with firms, economic development organizations, and other stakeholders to provide a comprehensive single point of contact for current and prospective business investors by:

Acting as an information clearinghouse and responding to inquiries about the U.S. business climate
Serving as ombudsman to help investors encountering confusion, delays or obstacles in a federal regulatory process
Advocating on behalf of the U.S. government in a globally competitive business location decision
Offering after care to companies that have U.S. investments

Companies and organizations use these services to help make business investment decisions when exploring the U.S. economy.

One of the companies in attendance at the White House forum, Canada-based AGS Automotive Systems, is a recent SelectUSA success story. The Company announced plans to manufacture bumper systems at an expanded facility in Michigan with an investment of $20 million.

Through the Commercial Service Canada’s introduction, SelectUSA met with AGS Automotive during its outreach visit to Toronto in September, 2011. Since then, SelectUSA has worked with AGS Automotive as the company evaluated its location decision among various options across North America.

Financial assistance and incentives offered by the State of Michigan were also pivotal in AGS Automotive’s investment decision. With these plans, the company will create 100 direct new jobs and retain its 50 existing jobs in the U.S. automotive sector.

The President also announced a new partnership between the Departments of Commerce and State to promote investment in the United States in ten priority countries through ITA’s Foreign Commercial Service and supported by U.S. embassies. A White House release explained:

“[t]his pilot effort will dedicate resources from Commerce’s Foreign Commercial Service (FCS) to investment promotion in 10 pilot countries representing 30 percent of foreign direct investment in the United States, expanding to cover 25 countries in 2013 representing roughly 90 percent of FDI. U.S. Ambassadors will lead these efforts, engaging officials from State and other in country officials to assist investment promotion through business outreach, hosting ‘investment missions’ with governors and mayors, and connecting foreign firms to SelectUSA services.”

The pilot countries will be: Brazil, Canada, China and Hong Kong, France, Germany, India, Mexico, Russia, South Korea, and Spain.

Maintaining America’s industry competitiveness is an ongoing endeavor; however, with programs like SelectUSA, it’s much easier for companies of all sizes and from all business segments to make a sound decision to locate operations here.

Posted in Commercial Service, Competitiveness, Investment, Manufacturing, Services | Tagged foreign direct investment, SelectUSA | 2 Comments »

Travel and Tourism Gets a Presidential Boost

January 19, 2012

This post contains external links. Please review our external linking policy.

Michael Masserman is the Director of the Office of Advisory Committees within the Manufacturing and Services division of the International Trade Administration

The new travel and tourism advisory board with Commerce Secretary John Bryson

Against the backdrop of Disney World, President Obama signed an executive order that will boost tourism to the United States and ultimately create jobs. The order will create, among other things, a Task Force on Travel and Competitiveness that will develop and deliver within 90 days a National Travel and Tourism Strategy that will help encourage international visitors to come to the United States. More than 47 million international visitors have arrived to see our sights, attend conferences, take family vacations, visit natural wonders, theme parks and experience what we have to offer. Developing a national tourism strategy and streamlining the visa process for non-immigrant visas will attract more tourists and create more jobs.

Commerce Secretary Bryson this week also welcomed the 32 members (19 of whom have never before served) of the re-chartered Travel and Tourism Advisory Board. The Board serves as the principal private sector advisory committee to the Secretary of Commerce on the U.S. travel and tourism industry.

As the new Board gets situated in their new role as advisors, they will be building on the foundation laid out by previous Boards. Originally chartered in 2003, the Board has been conferring and advising the Secretary on everything from revival of the Gulf Coast Region to recommendations on energy security and travel facilitation.

Members represent companies and organizations in the travel and tourism industry from a broad range of products and services, company sizes and geographic locations. Todd Davidson, CEO of Travel Oregon will serve as Chair and Sam Gilliand, Chairman and CEO of Sabre Holdings will serve as Vice-Chair. Both are returning members to the Board and will provide leadership in the activities of the new Board that will build on work of their predecessors.

The travel and tourism industry is a crucial part of the U.S. services economy whose strength and growth is essential to the economic health of our nation. Travel and tourism is a $1.2 trillion sector of the U.S. economy or nearly three percent of Gross Domestic Product. Critical to the nation’s overall economic health, the travel and tourism industry is one of the top employers for more than half of the U.S. states and territories.

The U.S. travel and tourism industry is on pace for a record-setting year. Through November 2011, international visitors spent an estimated $139.4 billion on U.S. travel and tourism-related goods and services year to date, an increase of 13 percent compared to the same period in 2010. The United States recorded a $38.4 billion trade surplus for travel and tourism through November 2011.

There is no denying that the health of the travel and tourism industry impacts millions of Americans nation-wide and the council of these 32 advisors will play a significant role in ensuring that Brazilian, Chinese, and Indian travelers come see America!

Posted in Exporting, Manufacturing and Services, Services, Travel & Tourism | Tagged National Travel and Tourism Strategy, Travel and Tourism Advisory Board | 5 Comments »

Meeting the Challenge of Supply Chain Infrastructure Competitiveness

December 7, 2011

With the recent announcement of a new advisory committee on supply chain competitiveness, the Department of Commerce is looking to work closely with U.S. industry to identify ways of improving the movement of goods.

Russell Adise is an international trade specialist in the International Trade Administration’s Manufacturing and Services unit.

An important step in assuring the integrity of U.S. supply chain infrastructure was taken on November 3, 2011, when Secretary of Commerce John Bryson and Francisco Sánchez, under secretary of commerce for international trade, announced the establishment of the Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Through this committee, the secretary of commerce will receive guidance and input from supply-chain firms and associations, stakeholders, community organizations, and others directly affected by the supply chain, as well as experts from academia, from throughout the United States on the development and administration of programs and policies to expand U.S. export growth and foster the competitiveness of U.S. supply chains in the domestic and global economy.

Bayonne, New Jersey port looking over New York City and the Statue of Liberty (photo courtesy istock/Janine Lamontagne)

Crucial Link in Trade

U.S. supply chains are a crucial link between the country’s exporters and the global economy. Every export, and every export-related job, is dependent on the operations and processes that comprise the nation’s supply chains, from material sourcing, to product manufacturing, to consumer delivery. U.S. export competitiveness depends on the smooth, seamless, and rapid movement of goods through the supply chains from beginning to end. Any chokepoint can result in missed exports, lost sales, higher costs, and lost jobs.

The declining state of U.S. infrastructure has become an increasing challenge to exporters. Systemic, long-term infrastructure deficiencies have a dramatic, negative impact on the speed and predictability of the movements of goods around the country. Shippers blame this situation on the lack of a comprehensive national freight infrastructure development and investment policy. They also assert that the United States is not improving its infrastructure fast enough to keep pace with the export demands of 21st century supply chains.

These infrastructure deficiencies pose challenges not only to individual exporters, but also to the success of the National Export Initiative, a federal initiative established by President Barack Obama in 2010 to achieve his goal of doubling U.S. exports by the end of 2014.

Regional Outreach

The advisory committee is a key piece of a larger Department effort to address the challenges of supply chain infrastructure, organized by the International Trade Administration’s Office of Service Industries, a part of ITA’s Manufacturing and Services unit. In 2010, ITA spearheaded the creation of the Competitive Supply Chain Infrastructure Initiative. This brings together federal and private-sector stakeholders to develop policies that will improve the efficiency and connectivity of U.S. supply chain infrastructure. As part of the initiative, then-Secretary of Commerce Gary Locke and Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood signed a memorandum of understanding in April 2010. It committed the two agencies to undertake a series of freight stakeholder outreach forums. Since September 2010, five such events have been held throughout the country: in Atlanta, Georgia; Chicago, Illinois; San Diego, California; Kansas City, Missouri; and Seattle, Washington. These have allowed the two federal agencies to widen their knowledge of each region’s top freight infrastructure issues. Additional events are planned for 2012.

How to Apply

U.S. citizens engaged in international trade or supply chain competitiveness issues are eligible to apply to be members of the new Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness. Nominations must be received by December 14, 2011. For more information, see the notice published in the Federal Register at 76 FR 68159 or contact Richard Boll of the International Trade Administration, tel. (202) 482-1135; e-mail: richard.boll@trade.gov.

Posted in Competitiveness, International Trade Update, Manufacturing and Services, Services, Supply Chain, Trade Advisory | Tagged Advisory Committees, Competitive Supply Chain Infrastructure Initiative | 2 Comments »

APEC 2011: Twenty-One Markets, Unlimited Opportunities!

November 22, 2011

Stephen L. Green is a Commercial Officer on domestic assignment with the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Honolulu and has served with the International Trade Administration since 2000.

The United States just wrapped up their year of hosting the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC) Summit and I was fortunate enough to be on hand in Hawaii for the finale. So, what’s left after the Summit? That is the burning question on the minds of all Hawaiian people as the largest event in the State’s history comes to a close. Over the past week, dignitaries, officials, and business executives from APEC’s 21 member economies descended on Honolulu to discuss the path forward in expanding trade, investment, and economic growth in order to create employment and raise living standards across the region. And, this was not just any group. Combined, they represent 40 percent of the world’s population, 56 percent of global gross domestic product, and approximately 50 percent of international trade. No, not just any group. Rather, the world’s most powerful coalition of economies that have agreed upon promoting open trade and investment across a region spanning thousands of miles on both sides of the Pacific Ocean. The United States, China, Japan, Russia, Canada, Mexico and 15 other major economies, they were all here in Honolulu last week. What’s left after APEC? I have plenty of answers.

Secretary Bryson presents a Certificate of Appreciation for Achievement in Trade to Lieutenant Governor Brian Schatz recognizing the State’s leadership in promoting the Hawaiian Islands as a destination for foreign travelers.

For starters, Hawaii-based companies met new international business partners. SKAI Ventures, one of our best clients, is now in deep discussions with a number of potential distributors met during APEC. And, deals were done. Sopogy, Inc., another one of our top clients, signed a memorandum of understanding with Sichuan Dongjia Investment Company outlining how this new partner will market Sopogy’s world-class micro concentrated solar power technology in China. In addition to the business deals happening at APEC, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s senior leadership honored local businesses and brought the message of expanded exports to the local economy. Recently-confirmed Secretary of Commerce John Bryson returned to his boyhood stomping grounds of Honolulu where he attended 7^th grade at Kaimuki Middle School, this time for his first bilateral meetings with APEC counterparts on a range of trade and investment issues. Secretary Bryson also presented two U.S. Department of Commerce Certificates of Appreciation for Achievement in Trade during his visit; one commending the Hawaii Pacific Export Council for its role in developing export opportunities for Hawaii-based companies and a second to Lieutenant Governor Brian Schatz recognizing the State’s leadership in achieving President Obama’s National Export Initiativegoals by promoting tourism in the Hawaiian Islands as a service export.

Secretary Bryson presents a Certificate of Appreciation for Achievement in Trade to Hawaii Pacific Export Council (HPEC) Chairman Steve Craven commending HPEC’s role in developing export opportunities for Hawaii-based companies.

Secretary Bryson (center) presents a Certificate of Appreciation for Achievement in Trade to Hawaii Pacific Export Council (HPEC) Chairman Steve Craven commending HPEC’s role in developing export opportunities for Hawaii-based companies.

Our Under Secretary for International Trade Francisco Sánchez and Assistant Secretary for Market Access and Compliance Michael Camuñez with their Indonesian counterparts launched the first-ever U.S.-Indonesian Commercial Dialogue that will pay close attention to harmonizing standards in the energy sector. And, Japan announced that it intends to join the 21^stCentury Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement that promises unprecedented opportunities for U.S. exporters doing business in the Asia-Pacific region.

The State of Hawaii has always been a surf-and-sand tropical paradise. That won’t change after APEC but what APEC surely did is transform the Hawaiian Islands into an international commercial hub, where doing business beyond the reef is an everyday part of life. Our office, the Hawaii U.S. Export Assistance Center, stands ready to make sure Hawaii companies take advantage of this new frontier.

Posted in APEC, Exporting, National Export Initiative, Services, Travel & Tourism | Tagged certificate of appreciation, export promotion | 4 Comments »

Tradeology, the ITA Blog

Archive for the ‘Services’ Category

Education Trade Mission Builds Ties Between United States and Central Europe

International Tourism Spending in 2011 Supported 103,000 Additional Tourism-Related Jobs

Jobs Supported by Exports Surge by 1.2 million

Trade Finance Guide: Now Online, with User-Friendly Features!

How U.S. Companies Can Start Taking Advantage of the U.S.-Korea Trade Agreement

Port of Baltimore Partners With India’s Mundra Port To Expand Exports, Trade

SelectUSA Brings Investment and Jobs to the United States

Travel and Tourism Gets a Presidential Boost

Meeting the Challenge of Supply Chain Infrastructure Competitiveness

APEC 2011: Twenty-One Markets, Unlimited Opportunities!

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