White House Launches National Export Initiative

Commerce Secretary Gary Locke today unveiled details of President Obama’s plan to double U.S. exports within five years to  $3 trillion while creating 2 million U.S. jobs.

The National Export Initiative will combine trade advocacy with export control reform to increase exports and the number of companies exporting goods to more than one market, Locke said at the National Press Club in Washington.

“Many companies don’t have the resources to identify new markets and opportunities,” Locke said. He said 58 percent of U.S. exporters only ship goods to one country. “We’ve got to drive that up so those companies export to two or three markets,” said Locke.

The Commerce Department and several other federal agencies together will form an “export promotion cabinet," Locke said. The agencies must report back to the president within 180 days, he said.

Locke said the White House is asking Congress to increase funding for trade promotion, including an additional $70 million for the International Trade Administration and $50 million for the Department of Agriculture in next year’s budget.

“We’re not just waiting for 2011 and the budget increases President Obama requested in his budget,” Locke said. “We’re focusing our resources now to increase exports today.”

The ITA plans to hire more than 300 trade experts to promote U.S. companies overseas and help more than 23,000 clients begin or grow their export sales in 2011, Locke said.

“American companies need advocates on the ground who will fight for business,” Locke said. The U.S. government, in the form of the ITA, needs to be “out there pounding the pavement” alongside U.S. companies, he said.

The export initiative will focus on promoting trade, getting financing to small exporters and stricter enforcement of international laws and agreements to ensure U.S. companies fair access to overseas markets and to fight counterfeiting.

Finding access to credit is a major obstacle for companies in the wake of the recession, Locke said. As part of the initiative, the Export-Import Bank will increase financing available to small businesses by $2 billion over the next year to $6 billion.

The bank authorized $1 billion in small business financing over the past three months, Locke said, to boost exports. It will coordinate with the Small Business Administration.