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REALLY USEFUL RESOURCES
for international trade professionals |
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 OUR FEATURED COUNTRY
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MENA
Improving Trade with the Middle East and North Africa
export.gov/middleeast/
In this issue we are pleased to have an article by a guest writer, Barney Lehrer of International Internet Strategies in New York City. The article originally appeared in the World Trade Daily blog.
As we know from seeing the news over the past year, the Arab world (MENA – Middle East North Africa) is changing. And such political changes will result in new business and trade environments. The recent death of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi has further focused international business communities on risks and opportunities in what seem to be new markets. The US government and US companies are observing the situation. As with the fall of the Soviet Union, some risk takers will do very well in this new era.
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Dubai Coast |
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The US government has outlined four main objectives for trade development in the MENA region:
1. Trade facilitation – lowering tariffs and other non-tariff barriers that currently hinder trade between the US and many of the MENA countries
2. Greater SME involvement in trade and investment-related activities
3. Expansion of services and investment
4. Improving access to and utilization of preference programs. The US already has Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco and Israel. The administration wants to expand tariff reductions to other countries in the region as their political situations stabilize.
For more information about the markets and business climate in the MENA region take a look at these websites:
• Albabwaba Business and AMEinfo - Business news from the Middle East
• Doing Business in the Middle East and North Africa - The World Bank’s report on setting up and doing business for SMEs in the Middle East and North Africa
• OECD-MENA Women's Business Forum - A platform for empowering women in business
• "Managing in Uncertain Times" a conference of the Academy of International Business - Middle East North Africa Chapter
• Trade and Investment Engagement with the Middle East and North Africa - A statement of US policy towards trade with the MENA region
• OPIC Fund for MENA investment - The Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the U.S. Government’s development finance institution, will provide up to $2 billion in financial support to catalyze private sector investment in the Middle East and North Africa
To help you do business in the MENA region:
• US Commercial Service resources for doing business in MENA
• Egypt: Forward – Partnering for Trade and Economic Growth
• National US Arab Chamber of Commerce (NUSACC) - Many events and extensive resources for doing business in Arab countries
• US Arab Chamber of Commerce - Document certification for trade with Arab countries
• Arab Chamber of Commerce - Extensive list of chambers of commerce throughout MENA
For information about doing business in other countries:
• FITA Country Miniportals, Reports about 185 countries.
• The Country Channels on GlobalTrade.net
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 REALLY USEFUL SITES
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District Export Councils
districtexportcouncil.com
Exporters in the US may have heard about their local District Export Council (DEC). But they may not really know what they are. According to the DEC's website, “The District Export Councils contribute leadership and international trade expertise to complement the U.S. Commercial Service's export promotion efforts through counseling businesses on the exporting process and conducting trade education and community outreach.” In other words, the DECS are a way of helping the US Commercial Service division of the US Department of Commerce promote exports. In these days of budget cuts, the DEC's services are more needed than ever.
The DEC's also do local training through Export University , lobby Congress on trade-related matters of interest to the Commercial Service and promote green technology exports. Many of the DEC's also have their own excellent websites. Particularly useful is the Minnesota DEC website.
The DEC Conference will be held this year in Las Vegas. It is the best conference in the US to network with exporters and service providers to the international trade community.
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Free Trade Agreements and Trade Adjustment Assistance
www.ustr.gov/FTA
After more than 5 years of negotiations and political squabbling in the US and other countries, Free Trade Agreements with South Korea, Colombia and Panama were finally signed by President Obama on October 21. The agreements create new opportunities for increased trade with these three markets.
Crucial to passage and signing of the agreements was the extension of the Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA), a program that helps retrain workers who have lost their jobs because of international trade agreements. |
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EVENTS AND WEBINARS
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Assisted by:
The U.S. Commercial Service |
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SOME UPCOMING COMMERCIAL SERVICE EVENTS
Stay up to date and informed with U.S. Commercial Service events and webinars!
• 2011 National DEC Conference & Exposition - Las Vegas, NE, United States 11/2/2011 - 11/5/2011
• Recruiting International Students - Nashville, TN, United States 11/16/2011 - 11/16/2011
• AESPCLink Training - Los Angeles, CA, United States 11/17/2011 - 11/17/2011
• AESPCLink Training - Long Beach, CA, United States 11/17/2011 - 11/17/2011
• EU REACH (Part 2) - Newark, NJ, United States 11/17/2011 - 11/17/2011
• Support Local Jobs & Grow globally - Ontario, California, CA, United States 11/28/2011 - 11/28/2011
• BIS Complying with Export Controls - TX, United States - 11/29/2011 - 11/30/2011
Get ready for next year's Tradeshows! Here is a list running in February 2012:
• ACREX India - For a greener tomorrow - Bangalore, India 02/23/2012 - 02/25/2012
• ICC China – Electronics & Telecommunication - Shenzhen, China 02/23/2012 - 02/25/2012
• Irish Franchise Catalog Show - Dublin, Ireland 02/24/2012 - 02/25/2012
• Personal Care and Homecare Ingredients - Shanghai, China 02/27/2012 - 02/29/2012
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