Global Opportunities and New Markets

I am sitting with Luciana Mello, an Afro-Brazilian entrepreneur whose consulting company, Prama Consulting, assists small and medium-sized businesses export from Brazil. One of her main lines of business is language translation services. As businesses continue to move to a global economy, there is a growing need for translation services.

This fiscal year for the first time, the Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) has set an all-time single-year record of more than $500 million in export financing for minority-owned and woman-owned businesses in the United States. The Bank’s financing has supported more than 400 transactions and an estimated 7,000 American jobs across the country.

Ex-Im Bank employs a business-development team devoted exclusively to assisting minority-owned and woman-owned businesses. The team provides resources on how to access global markets and use Ex-Im’s export financing to break into or expand export sales.

US-Colombia FTA will increase opportunities for American exporters and create American jobs

This summer, the United States Department of Commerce, in conjunction with the State Department, held a webinar that outlined the US-Colombia Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and explained what this historical agreement would mean to businesses in the United States.

Over 200 businesses registered for this webinar and had the opportunity to have their questions answered directly by the Ambassador to Colombia Michael McKinley, National Deputy Director of the Minority Business Development Agency, Alejandra Y. Castillo, and Michael Masserman, Executive Director for Export Policy, Promotion and Strategy at the International Trade Association. To help advance President Obama’s National Export Initiative, the presenters educated export-ready business owners about the potential of the U.S.–Colombia  Free Trade Agreement.  This Free Trade Agreement has massive potential for American business, as this new agreement could increase U.S. exports by $1.1 billion.

Why should American businesses (especially small ones!) care about exporting? Because through exports a company of any size can increase their sales, enter previously untapped markets, and strengthen the financial stability of their company. Most importantly, exporting is one of the key methods for putting Americans back to work. This is especially true for minority-owned businesses that are exploring other ways to employ American workers. Minority-owned businesses have a competitive advantage in global trade based on their cultural ties, language skills and nimbleness. 

The 2007 Survey of Business Owners reveals that among firms with export sales representing 20 percent or more of their overall receipts, minority-owned businesses are twice as likely to export compared to non-minority firms. In addition, minority firms are more than three times as likely to have businesses generating 100 percent of all their sales in exports compared to non-minority respondent firms. This finding is quite substantial because it supports the Administration’s goal to double the nation’s exports by the end of 2014.

Ninety-six percent of the world’s consumers live outside of the United States and represent two-thirds of the world’s purchasing power. U.S. companies that export enjoy business success with increased sales and profit potential. Exporting also helps businesses weather downturns in the domestic economy by being prepared to respond to foreign competition and global market trends.