Increase Sales and Profits: If your firm is succeeding domestically, expanding overseas will likely improve overall profitability as well. Of the total global market, 95 percent is located outside of the U.S. Furthermore, workers in jobs supported by goods exports receive wages 13 to 20 percent higher than the national average. U.S. services exports more than doubled since 1989, rising from $117 billion to over $279 billion in 2002. Additionally, export markets provide an additional source of revenue during domestic economic downturns.
Enhance Competitiveness: Establishing your company overseas will provide a new global perspective and can facilitate improvements with existing and new products. Innovative products that may not have succeeded domestically might find demand in an overseas market. Exporting can help you compete more effectively against foreign competitors here in the U.S and can help you win and retain global Tier 1 clients.
Long-Term Security: The U.S. is a large market with a wealth of opportunity, but it is also a mature market with intense competition from domestic, and increasingly, foreign competitors. The U.S. National Foreign Trade Council estimates that about 80 percent of all U.S. industry now faces international competition. We are approaching the day when we will be doing business in a single global market instead of foreign and domestic markets separately. Exporting firms are 9 percent less likely to shut down than comparable non-exporting plants.
Small Companies Can Be Successful Exporters: It is a popular misconception that only large companies can succeed overseas. From 1992 to 2001, the total number of U.S. small and medium-sized firms that exported goods increased 105 percent, from 112,854 firms to 231,420 firms. Of all U.S. exporters, small and medium-sized firms make up 96.7 percent and export $165 billion of goods. Many small companies have found that their competitive advantage lies in some unique or niche products that are in demand overseas.
A Level Playing Field: Furthermore, trade liberalization, including the recent Free Trade Agreements, has helped to remove trade barriers and open new markets for U.S. exporters.
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Our goal is to ensure that women-owned, minority-owned, and small businesses are aware of the resources available to enhance their export performance and to help them enter foreign markets and succeed in the global economy. For more information on the Global Diversity Initiative, please contact us at (202) 482-4792, or email at Global_Diversity@ita.doc.gov