April 10, 2015
On Monday April 6th, Secretary Penny Pritzker travelled to
Richmond, Virginia where she was joined by U.S. Senator Tim Kaine for a
roundtable meeting with local business owners. During the roundtable, the
Secretary and Senator Kaine discussed how increased trade opportunities for
businesses, including trade deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership, will
positively impact Virginia companies and the Commonwealth’s economy. Later
in the week, Secretary Pritzker led the first meeting of the President’s Advisory
Council on Doing Business in Africa, which built upon what was started at the
U.S.-Africa Business Forum last August. Today, the Secretary kicks off the
Smart Cities-Smart Growth Business Development Mission, which will promote U.S.
exports to China.
Also this week, Deputy Secretary of Commerce Bruce Andrews
was in Panama, City, Panama where he participated in the Summit of the
Americas. There, he was engaged in several bilateral meetings, viewed Panama
Canal expansion efforts, and announced a new Commerce Department partnership
with the Inter-American Development Bank, which aims to help small and
medium-sized businesses in the Western Hemisphere. Deputy Secretary Andrews
also participated in President Obama’s bilateral meeting with Panamanian President
Varela, as well as witnessed the signing of the largest deal between a
Panamanian and American based company, Copa Airlines and Boeing, which aims to
create an estimated 12,000 U.S. jobs.
Around Commerce, a new report was released on how exports
help to support jobs and grow small businesses; USPTO commemorated the 225th
anniversary of the Patent Act; and NOAA launched its Okeanos Explorer to
prospect deep-water regions around Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Thank you for keeping America Open for Business.
-Jim
Statement
by Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker on the Tragic Loss of Census Master
Security Officer Lawrence Buckner- To all of our Census employees and our
Commerce family, please know that your service to our country is valued and
honored. The entire Commerce Department is committed to the safety and
security of all our employees, and it is employees like Master Security Officer
Lawrence Buckner that are our first line of defense.
New
Administration Report: Exports Helping to Support Jobs, Grow Small Businesses
Across America- The report includes the most current data for all 50
states on the overall value of goods exports and on exports to countries
involved in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the Transatlantic Trade and
Investment Partnership (TTIP), as well as data on the number of exporters and
the percent of exporters that are small- or medium-sized businesses.
11.7
Million Reasons to Lead on Trade- That’s the estimated number of
American jobs supported by exports in 2014, our fifth consecutive year of
record-breaking exports. As this new report underscores, the world wants
what America is selling. To unlock the opportunity that beckons beyond our
borders, we must lead on trade.
President’s
Advisory Council on Doing Business in Africa is Writing a New Chapter in
U.S.-Africa Relations- Wednesday’s gathering was intended to build on what
was started at the historic U.S.-Africa Business Forum last August, when U.S.
firms announced more than 14 billion worth of investments in African markets.
Secretary
Pritzker and Senator Kaine Meet with Local Business Leaders in Richmond to
Discuss Trade Opportunities- The Secretary and Senator discussed the
importance of trade and exports to economic growth, and how new trade
opportunities for businesses, including deals like the Trans-Pacific Partnership,
will open doors for Virginia companies and the Commonwealth’s economy.
U.S.
Deputy Secretary of Commerce Bruce Andrews Announces Partnership with Inter-American
Development Bank- U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Bruce Andrews announced
that the U.S. Department of Commerce is partnering with the Inter-American
Development Bank (IDB) to make it easier for small and medium-sized businesses
(SMEs) throughout the Western Hemisphere to enter new markets and grow.
USPTO
Commemorates 225th Anniversary of the Patent Act- “Fostering the creative
and entrepreneurial environment that made the evolution of the laser-and so
many other technologies-possible, remains the central promise of the Patent Act
of 1790 and the progress clause of our Constitution,” said Under Secretary of
Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the USPTO Michelle K. Lee
during a commemoration ceremony at the USPTO headquarters.
February
2015, Trade Deficit Decreased- The Census Bureau’s Ariel Sedeno blogs that the
trade deficit in goods and services decreased to $35.4 billion in February, a
$7.2 billion decrease from the January deficit of $42.7 billion, revised. The
decrease in the deficit reflects a decrease of $3.0 billion in exports and a
larger decrease of $10.2 billion in imports.
NOAA’s
Okeanos Explorer- From April 9 to April 30, 2015, NOAA Ship Okeanos
Explorer will explore largely uncharted deep-sea ecosystems and
seafloor in the vicinity of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Coast
Survey helps scientists sharpen hydrographic skills- For four weeks in
February, NOAA’s Office of Coast Survey offers formal hydrographic training to
newly hired survey technicians and physical scientists, using the beautiful
campus at the United States Coast Guard Training Center in Yorktown,
Virginia.
Monthly
Wholesale Trade Survey-February 2015: February
2015 sales of merchant wholesalers were $444.2 billion, down 0.2
percent from last month. End-of-month inventories were $574.0 billion, up 0.3
percent from last month.
Commerce
Data in the News:
Time Magazine
cites fertility statistics from the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey
to write that more women in the U.S. are childless than at any other time in
the article Nearly
Half of Women Between 15 and 44 are Childless.
USA Today cites
Census Bureau statistics on median earnings by occupation and sex to write that
the largest occupational gender gap
is personal financial adviser, where women earn just 61.3 percent of what men
earn, in the article 10 Jobs With the Highest Gender Pay Gaps.
The New York Times
cites Census Bureau population projections to write that by 2030, the number of Americans 65 and older will
grow to 72 million, up from 40.2 million in 2010, in the article, Over 50 and Back in College, Preparing for
a New Career.
The Washington
Times cites statistics from the Census Bureau’s American Community Survey
to write that the percentage of women 65 and older in nonfamily households who
choose not to live alone has grown to 3.8 percent, up from 2.96 percent, in the
article Shared
Housing Trend Grows Among Older Adults.
Data Releases Next
Week: Advance Monthly Retail Trade
and Food Services March 2015 (Census); Manufacturing and Trade:
Inventories and Sales: February 2015 (Census); New Residential Construction: March
2015 (Census).
Starting today, Secretary Pritzker will be leading the first Obama Administration Presidential
designated trade mission. Her Smart Cities-Smart Growth Business Development
Mission to China will promote U.S. companies in launching or increasing their
business in the marketplace. Deputy Secretary of Energy Dr. Elizabeth
Sherwood-Randall will join her in Beijing, Shanghai, and Guangzhou.
On Sunday, Deputy Secretary Bruce Andrews will give
remarks at the Baldridge Awards Ceremony occurring at the 27th
Annual Quest for Excellence® Conference. Acting NIST Director Willie May will
also attend.
Also on Sunday, MBDA National Director Alejandra Castillo
will attend the PowerMoves.NOLA event in Detroit, MI. PowerMoves.NOLA
is a national initiative aimed at creating power through the opportunity of
high-growth minority entrepreneurship.
On Monday, ITA Under Secretary for International Trade
Stefan Selig will lead a policy and commercial diplomacy trip to Israel, UAE,
Qatar, and Kuwait.
On Tuesday, NTIA Associate Administrator Doug Kinoph and
NTIA Director of the State Broadband Initiative Anne Neville will attend the
Broadband Communities Summit in Austin, Texas.
Additionally on Tuesday, Under Secretary for Industry and
Security Eric L. Hirschhorn will attend the U.S. Export Assistance
Center/District Export Council (DEC) Breakfast in Denver, CO, where he will
update DEC members on the recent progress of the Export Control Reform
Initiative.
On Wednesday, USPTO Director Michelle K. Lee will meet
with tech transfer executives in Madison, WI at the University of Wisconsin in
Madison, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, followed by a fireside chat
at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery. Later that day, USPTO Director
Michelle K. Lee will participate in White House Business Council tech leaders
roundtable and a fireside chat with Matter, a health technology startup
incubator, both in Chicago, IL.
Also on Wednesday, BEA Director Brian Moyer will discuss
how new BEA data can improve business decision-making at a forum for
Richmond-area business leaders and economists at the Federal Reserve Bank of
Richmond.
On Thursday, MBDA National Director Alejandra Castillo
will participate on the “Promoting an Ecosystem for Entrepreneurship and MSME
Development” panel to examine public policy frameworks to help entrepreneurs
thrive in an innovation economy.
Additionally on Thursday, Acting NIST Director Willie May
will present retiring Senator John. D. Rockefeller with a sapling grown from NIST’s “Newton Apple
Tree” in recognition of his support for NIST during his congressional tenure.
On Friday, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Economic
Development Matt Erskine will make brief remarks at an Organization of American
States event to kick off the Americas Competitiveness Exchange on Innovation
and Entrepreneurship trip.
Also on Friday, USPTO Director Michelle K. Lee will
participate in a White House Business Council event, will speak at the Detroit
TechWeek Entrepreneurship Summit in Detroit, MI, and will visit the USPTO
satellite office in Detroit, MI.
Additionally on Friday, MBDA National Deputy Director
Albert Shen will deliver opening remarks discussing White House Initiatives on
AAPIs as well as deliver the keynote address at a networking reception at the
Symposium on ASIA-USA Partnership Opportunities (SAUPO) in Atlanta, GA.
Secretary
Pritzker and Senator Kaine tour World Art Group in Richmond, Virginia.
Bonus Photo of the Week:
The
United States of Trade Gallery- “These 50 infographics tell the story of
thousands and thousands of U.S. businesses and 11.7 million American workers
whose livelihoods are supported by exports each and every day.”- Secretary
Pritzker
Deputy
Secretary Bruce Andrews highlights the benefits of the seventh Summit of
the Americas in Panama City, Panama.
U.S.
Island Area Populations- According to the 2010 Census, Guam remains
the most populous U.S. Island Area with more than 150,000 residents. It was
also the only area to gain population from 2000 to 2010, growing by 2.9
percent. Of all the Island Areas, the Northern Mariana Islands’ population
declined the most between 2000 and 2010, dropping about 22 percent to 53,883.
It reversed a trend of growth during the 1990s when its population increased 60
percent. Between 2000 and 2010, American Samoa’s population declined by 3.1
percent to 55,519, and the U.S. Virgin Islands population declined by 2.0
percent to 106,405.
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