International Trade

The state's Office of International Trade, joined by community colleges and local economic development agencies, will present a series of three seminars next month aimed at helping Maryland companies develop export business.Each of the three seminars, which will begin at 9 a.m. and last until 5 p.m., will deal with dif- ferent aspects of international trade:Jan. 16: International marketing (morning session) and representation contracts (afternoon session).Jan. 23: Letters of credit and other methods of international payment (morning)

Maryland could outlaw the shark fin trade under a bill that passed the House of Delegates this week. The fins, the key ingredient in shark fin soup and considered a delicacy in some Chinese cuisines, have undergone global scrutiny because of unsustainable harvesting practices. In some parts of the world, the fins are sliced off the sharks and the wounded animals are left to swim in the sea. The ban, which now heads to the Senate, would outlaw the importation or possession of shark fins.

Eric Feldmann's departure from the helm of the Maryland International Division provides an opportunity to make more effective an agency roiled by identity and political troubles. Last week, legislators, responding to complaints, demanded a performance audit. A special joint legislative committee, meanwhile, has recommended that some of the division's duties be handed off to the World Trade Center Institute, a non-profit group jointly funded by the state and private companies. Four key people have jumped ship in recent months.

International commerce and openness are in the British bloodstream. They have been the foundation of our economy since the Industrial Revolution. Today trade remains the cornerstone of the U.K. economy and a crucial factor in America's success too. Yet in the current economic turmoil, it can be hard for governments to keep their eyes on the prize of economic recovery as our traditional industries suffer, jobs are lost and each country struggles to...

Maryland must bolster its manufacturing base and upgrade its airport to excel at international trade, according to a report issued today by the University of Baltimore.The "International Scorecard," released to coincide with World Trade Week, ranks Maryland near the bottom of the 50 states in terms of value of products exported. The state also has a below-average ranking in employment at foreign-owned companies.But Maryland gets high marks for its efforts to promote exports and for expenditures to attract foreign investment.

Gov. William Donald Schaefer conceded that the Maryland International Division had made mistakes in the way it spent money, but told a legislative subcommittee that the state must not give up its efforts to promote international trade."

You have to squint to read the bottom lines of the eye chart in Andrew Buettner's Severna Park office. It's a novelty-type chart, with letters adding up to words."

New York -- Thinking of opening a foreign trading post in London, Tokyo or Berlin? A better bet may be Africa or Latin America.Dozens of U.S.-made products -- from rags to telecommunications satellite terminals -- are in great demand from small, fast-growing countries that often are overlooked in the vast ocean of international trade. Two examples of the burgeoning trade: Secondhand clothing shipments to Africa exceeded $45 million in 1990, up 30 percent from the year before. Shipments of sophisticated airplane parts to Africa rose 45 percent, to $193 million.

Is the state getting its money's worth from the MarylandInternational Division, the Department of Economic and Employment Development agency billed as a "one-stop shop" for businesses interested in foreign trade?A number of state legislators appear to be losing confidence in the way the division is being managed and the way its $4.5 million budget is spent.Lawmakers ordered a performance audit of the division this week and a special joint legislative committee recommended that some of the work now being done by the Maryland International Division be taken over by the private sector.

The number of businesses owned by minorities and women are growing exponentially, yet they aren't taking full advantage of the global marketplace available through the Internet, a senior U.S. Commerce Department official said yesterday."

The recent controversy over Dubai Ports World's thwarted effort to operate a portion of the port of Baltimore and several others this year was only the latest instance of political winds buffeting the city's port, which marks its 300th birthday next week. At times, the problems also have been physical and fiscal. They have revolved around egos, safety and security, competition and land. A list from generations back would include wars that interrupted commerce, fires that burned warehouses and buried piers and labor unrest that posed the threat of stagnation.

Executives at CTRL Systems Inc. successfully sold their diagnostic equipment to all sorts of customers in America and even sold it for use aboard the International Space Station. But when it came to the down-to-earth challenge of selling around the globe, the task seemed larger than the small Westminster company's limited marketing resources. The company's annual revenue is less than $5 million. Yet with some help from the U.S. Export Assistance Center in Baltimore, CTRL took the plunge.

These events are scheduled at the Baltimore Convention Center, Howard and Pratt streets. May 4-8 Supplyside East International trade show and conference. Estimated attendance: 3,000+. May 9-12 Society for Technical Communication convention. Estimated attendance: 2,000+. Information: 703-522-4114. May 10-15 Club Industry East trade show. Estimated attendance: 500+. Information: 215- 489-9556. May 14-20 Tech Association of the Pulp and Paper Industry convention. Estimated attendance: 1,600+.

As the Howard County Economic Development Authority has focused on drawing international businesses, it has often looked to Europe. But a conference to be held next week at the International Trade Center is designed to give local entrepreneurs and business developers a look at another area of the world they may not have considered - west Africa. The conference on trade opportunities with Ghana - a west African country slightly smaller than Oregon - will give local businesses with an interest in international trade basic information on state and federal aid that may be available to them and specifics on Ghana's resources and business opportunities.

WILLIAMSBURG, Va. -- The Bush administration's trade agenda just got a big boost -- sort of. Late last week, a House-Senate conference committee reached a compromise agreement that would give President Bush broad new authority to negotiate international trade deals. "Trade promotion authority," formerly known as "fast track," would allow the administration to negotiate comprehensive trade agreements that Congress must consider as a package. Without trade promotion authority, no nation would offer concessions to the United States since shifting coalitions in Congress could nitpick line items of the agreement afterward.

Columbia-based RWD Technologies Inc. has made a tidy business of selling consulting services and training business leaders in the United States and in a few spots in Europe. Kenneth J. Rebeck, the company's chief operating officer, said he would like the publicly traded company to double its international business - which accounted for 10 percent of last year's $117 million in sales - in coming years, and expand beyond London, Germany, Singapore and Canada. But Rebeck's experience in trying to pick more valuable strategic locations for his company has taught him that it's still a big world out there.

WASHINGTON -- In a confirmation of U.S. competitiveness in at least one sector of the economy, the nation's capital created an export in a single day that could reduce the trade deficit by $100 million or more over the next 12 months.It consists of legal and lobbying services to be contracted by the 21 foreign countries and 47 foreign steel companies that must defend themselves against the trade complaints filed here Tuesday by struggling U.S. steel producers.To avoid punitive customs duties of up to 165 percent on shipments to the United States, each company and each country has hired or plans to hire at least one Washington law firm.

President Bush imposed three-year tariffs of up to 30 percent on imported steel yesterday to give the beleaguered domestic industry time to consolidate and get on its feet, a move that drew praise from steelmakers, lukewarm support from steel workers, and vitriol from exporting nations and domestic steel users. But even as Bush attempted to give the industry relief against a flood of imports, he declined to support a government bailout of the multibillion-dollar tab for retiree health care costs and pensions.

WASHINGTON - As the vote nears in the House on a major China trade bill, Rep. Benjamin L. Cardin is one of the most prominent lawmakers still wavering. His indecision has allowed pressure to build from allies on all sides of the issue - from his wife, Myrna, to constituents on the street, to labor union officials, to corporate executives, to his congressional colleagues, to President Clinton himself. "People don't fully understand the impact of China," said the Baltimore Democrat. "I think there is a lot of anxiety about international trade.