Was recently at BIS Update and wanted to share what is new on the National Export Initiative.

Remember the Obama Administration plan to double exports as a way to rebuild the US economy? Well it looks like the one part vision and a pinch of desire to change is not enough. The New York Times has analyzed the progress so far, with mixed results, and highlights the many barriers to achieving the goals of the National Export Initiative (NEI).

I ran across this report from Management Dynamics. Check it out.

Benchmark Report: Export Compliance Management

This report profiles export compliance programs of large, small, & medium-sized enterprises in many industries to reveal challenges companies face in managing export compliance. Receive a copy of the Export Compliance Benchmark!

It appears that the National Export Initiative (NEI) is on track to fulfill the President's goal of doubling exports and creating several million jobs over the next five years. According to this press release, significant progress has already been made on the President's five main objectives:

The Treasury Department states that the Office of Foreign Assets Control announced an $860,000 settlement with Agar Corporation, Inc. (ACI), an oil field equipment company. ACI participated in the unlicensed export of oil and gas production equipment for use in Sudan, which is in violation of the Sudanese Sanctions Regulations.

STRTrade published this helpful summary article encouraging exporters looking to increase their sales to also remain compliant with international trade regulations, especially in relation to the new National Export Initiative:

FINDING A WILLING BUYER ONLY ONE PART OF THE EXPORT PROCESS: Exporters Looking to Boost Business Need

The Obama administration is launching a government-wide effort to double U.S. exports over the next five years as part of a plan to increase domestic employment and boost the U.S. economy. However, companies looking to take advantage of the new National Export Initiative to break into new markets should be aware that shipping goods overseas comes with potential perils as well as opportunities.

As part of the NEI, the federal government plans to increase its trade advocacy efforts, including educating U.S. companies about opportunities overseas, directly connecting them with new customers and advocating more forcefully for their interests. The NEI will also include a focus on improving access to export financing and helping to remove barriers that prevent U.S. companies from getting access to foreign markets. Only a very small percentage of U.S. companies currently export their products, and of those that do, 58% export to only one country. The Obama administration is looking to increase these figures in the expectation that doing so will also increase employment.

On Monday, the House voted to extend two trade programs for one more year, according to the Journal of Commerce. The General System of Preferences and the Andean Trade Preference Act will expire December 31st and have been enacted for several years.

The New York Times reports that Peru has recently signed a Free Trade Agreement with four European countries, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein.

Anyone surprised by this new report? According to the New York Times, the recession has made companies more conservative on price. So now, these companies are looking to Chinese suppliers, who have reduced prices, making it possible to grab the majority of the market share. Companies around the world are switching to China to cut costs and save money, making it easier for Chinese suppliers to gain leads in old markets and obtain new ones. China has surpassed Germany on exports this year and has become America's number one importer (formerly Canada).

Even as oil prices rise, people are still worried about the state of the economy, but things are beginning to look up. Today the Wall Street Journal posted an article entitled, “U.S. Trade Gap Shrinks as Exports Rise.” This short but positive article by Tom Barkley states that the United States trade deficit shrank for the first time in months this past August.

This narrowing of the trade gap is mostly due to the increase in exports, which are at the peak for the year. Exports rose to $128.22 billion, the highest level since they were $132.92 billion last December. Imports also fell for the first time since May, dropping by about $1,000,000,000. This is a definite Global Trade Success!