General - why businesses should consider exporting
- 95% of the world's population is outside of the United
States, which represents 70% of the world's purchasing
power. Businesses that only sell goods within the
United States miss out on huge sales
potential
- Exporting enables companies to diversify their portfolios and
to stay strong during changes in economic
climates. In other words, the company's success
does not rely on the performance of a single economy
- Businesses that choose not to export run the risk
of allowing a foreign competitor to enter their market and
steal market share
- Recent free trade agreements have drastically reduced
barriers to trade. The North America Free Trade Agreement
(NAFTA), Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), and many
other FTAs have created an ideal trade climate
- Small and medium-sized exporters make up about 97% of all
U.S. exports
- Nearly 20% of all manufacturing jobs in the United States
have a high dependency on
exports
National export trends
- The United States exported $1,162,708,293,000 worth of goods
to all other countries in 2007. This represents an
increase of over 10% from 2006
- The US's largest export markets are Canada, Mexico,
China, Japan, and the United Kingdom
Utah export trends
- Utah exported $7,811,528,625 worth of goods during 2007.
This represents an increase of 90% from the 2003 level
of $4.1 billion
- The largest export sector was primary metal manufactures. It
accounted for $3,222,119,519 or 41.2% of the total
- Other strong sectors include computers and electronic
products, transportation equipment, and mining. These sectors
combined account for nearly 30% of all Utah exports
- 2,236 businesses exported goods from Utah in 2006. The
vast majority (85%) of these businesses were
small or medium-size
- Utah's highest volume trade partner is the United Kingdom.
Local businesses exported about $2,382,394,000 worth of
goods to the U.K. in 2007
- Canada, Switzerland, Japan, Belgium, China, and India
are Utah's other large export markets
- Over 14.8% of all Utah manufacturing workers depend on
exports for their jobs
Source: International Trade Administration
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