William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor | Apr 13, 2012 2:20PM EDT
U.S. exports, economic integration and international security will be on President Obama’s agenda at the Summit of the Americas this weekend in Columbia.
The president leaves today for the summit in Cartagena, Colombia, where leaders from the 33 nations will discuss economic cooperation, development and violence.
Obama is scheduled to speak on the importance of U.S.-Latin American trade Friday at the Port of Tampa, where 40 percent of exports go to Latin American markets.
“Those exports are growing faster than our trade with the rest of the world,” an administration spokesman said at a White House press briefing April 11.
Obama is expected to stress the importance of building on free trade agreements with Columbia and Panama, and export opportunities for small businesses.
The White House said 42 percent of total U.S. exports go to markets in the Western Hemisphere, with Canada being the largest U.S. trading partner in the region.
Contact William B. Cassidy at wcassidy@joc.com. Follow him on Twitter at @wbcassidy_joc
