Globalization is good for North Carolina

RALEIGH, N.C. - Nov. 3, 2016 - PRLog -- Free Trade and Globalization is good for North Carolina

Deep into this election cycle, there has been an unprecedented discussion on the negative effects of global trade, free trade agreements and globalization in general. This has been further highlighted by public debate around the largest multi-lateral trade agreement ever signed (but not yet ratified) by the USA, being the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The TPP is between 12 countries around the Asia Pacific Rim, and excludes China, Korea and India. It will remove over 18,000 trade barriers and covers key social aspects such as the environment and labor laws.

The North Carolina Foreign Trade Promotion Council hosted a conference in Wilmington, NC in mid-October to discuss the recent investments helping NC companies compete globally as well as the recent addition of a 22 countywide Foreign Trade Zone, in southeast North Carolina (SENC). The Honorable Elaine F. Marshall, NC Secretary of State, covered key support services to further assist NC companies in their global growth, and to continue the focus on competitiveness and trade facilitation. Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary from Japan to the United States of America - DCM Atsuyuki OIKE was the keynote luncheon speaker encouraging the audience to examine the downside of not ratifying the TPP.

Mr. Barnes also recently published a book which explains the TPP. The recent public debate and political spin have distorted the basic facts and benefits of free trade. The book is called "A Naked View of the Trans-Pacific Partnership – An unbiased informational review in plain English"

We have provided a list below of the key facts around the benefits to NC as a result of global trade and free trade agreements:

• North Carolina exported over $30B of goods in 2015, these are made by North Carolina residents and then sold overseas. – source census.gov
• The three largest export industries for NC companies are aircraft parts ($1.3B in 2015), medicines ($961M in 2015) and tobacco ($712M in 2015) – source census.gov
• The top three countries that NC companies export to are Canada ($6.9B in 2015), Mexico ($3.2B in 2015) and China ($2.1B in 2015) – source census.gov
• There have been four Free Trade Zones (FTZ) established in NC to support local companies in their export needs, providing efficiency and cost reductions in trade. source https://www.nccommerce.com/it/about-us/foreign-trade-zones
• NC has started to slip behind other states in their exports, currently rated as 17th largest in the US, down from 16th largest. It is believed that if it wasn't for the robust agricultural export program, NC would fall further down the list.
• NC growth over the past 20 years in exports is supported by NAFTA, where Canada and Mexico are the largest trading partners, and the reduction of red tape and tariffs have given NC companies a much simpler and cost effective process to sell into these two countries.

The specific goal of trade agreements is to level the playing field between the participants to help facilitate trade It is up to each company to then understand the agreement and maximize the opportunities it provides. Specific to the TPP, the US is already compliant in over 80% of the requirements, however there are a number of countries in the TPP such as Vietnam and Malaysia that are not, and historically have used those advantages to beat US companies on price. The TPP will ensure that all 12 countries involved will meet the same standards, and these include social standards around environmental laws and labor laws.

It has long been reported that many US companies still see international trade as negative and scary, and because of that, often prefer to play defense via local protections rather than focus on offence, and expand into global markets. Our two organizations work with a number of NC and US companies supporting their global growth initiatives, and we have seen many success stories of local companies growing globally. Germany is one of the world leaders in expanding their products into global markets, however the US is falling behind with only 3% of small- medium enterprise (SME) companies exporting their product globally.

The US International Trade Commission report (May 2016) provides a detailed list of those industries which will have a negative and positive impact over the next 15 years if the TPP is ratified. Those most negatively impacted are heavily weighted in auto and electronic manufacturing. However, those industries are heavily outweighed by the positive impact to industries that focus on business services, agricultural and food production and retailers and wholesalers. The report shows that collectively the US will have a positive increase in exports of 19% by 2032, and an annual increase in GDP of $43B by 2032.

Bio's

John G Hayes, Ph.D.

Dr. Hayes is Executive Director of the Foreign Trade Promotion Council (FTPC), www.ncftpc.com, with over twenty-five years of experience in global business development. Dr. Hayes taught International business at Georgetown University and is a frequent lecturer on exporting and trade financing and the essentials of finding global buyers and developing growth strategies. Dr. Hayes was the Executive Director of President Reagan's global trade program: EXPORT NOW. Working with Fortune 100 C level executives on this Presidential board in executing the national strategy for trade, while expanding small and midsize company's global presence and reducing the National Trade deficit. Upon leaving public service, Dr. Hayes was Director of World Wide Business Development and Trade Finance for American International Group. He started several IT and environmental companies. Dr. Hayes is presently active on the University of North Carolina Wilmington, Advancement Council and several educational non- profits.

Mr. Timothy Barnes

Timothy Barnes was born in Sydney, Australia and is currently the president of Asia Pacific Consulting LLC based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Timothy is also the author of a recently published book, "A Naked View of the Trans-Pacific Partnership" which is an unbiased informational reivew in plain english, published by Dog Ear Publishing ISBN 978-1457549663