January 30, 2015
This week, Secretary Pritzker
accompanied President Obama to New Delhi, India where the two American
officials and some of the top CEOs met with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and
other senior Indian official business leaders. During the trip, Secretary
Pritzker announced the expansion of the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue to the
U.S.-India Strategic AND Commercial Dialogue. This is hugely important as it is
a clear demonstration of both countries’ commitment to strengthening commercial
and economic ties.
This week saw a series of economic reports about the
fourth quarter of 2014 that illustrated that economic growth was not only
consistent, but also entailed a wide range of substantial improvements
including solid improvement in the labor market and rising consumer sentiment.
This morning, Commerce’s Bureau of Economic Analysis reported that the gross
domestic product (GDP) grew 2.4% on an annual basis in 2014, the strongest
growth since 2010 and 0.2 percentage points more than in 2013. Given the
President’s emphasis on middle-class economics, the economic growth in the
fourth quarter looks to continue into 2015, benefiting all American families.
On Tuesday, at the 66th
annual Gold and Silver Honor Awards ceremony, Deputy Secretary Andrews
presented the highest honor that the agency could give to outstanding employees
and teams from across the entire Department.
Around Commerce, the U.S. Census Bureau compiled a collection of facts examining the
demographics of the host city of Super Bowl XLIX, as well as Boston and Seattle;
the Economic and Statistics Administration mashed together NOAA data on
temperatures and Census home heating sources to provide insight into what keeps
fellow Americans warm this winter; and the Economic Development Administration
announced the next round of competition under the Investing in Manufacturing
Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative.
Please reach out to us if there is
anything our Department can do to help you and please share your ideas as they
are greatly appreciated.
-Jim
U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker
Joins President Obama in Calls for More Trade and Investment with India- As part of President Obama’s official
delegation to India, Secretary Penny Pritzker joined the President and Prime
Minister of India Narendra Modi at the U.S.-India Business Summit
where they focused on ways to expand market access and increase opportunities
for U.S. firms through improvements in India’s business climate.
Secretary Pritzker Focuses on Strengthening Bilateral Commercial
Relationship, Increasing Foreign Direct Investment During Trip to India- Secretary Penny
Pritzker announced the expansion of the U.S.-India Strategic Dialogue
to a Strategic and Commercial Dialogue, reflecting the two countries’
commitment to strengthening commercial and economic ties. Secretary Pritzker
will chair the new commercial components of the Dialogue.
Fast-Paced Foreign Direct Investment from India- Hosted by the Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), the event brought together business
leaders, investors, and national business associations from across India.
Secretary Penny Pritzker was accompanied by Vinai Thummalapally, Executive
Director of the SelectUSA Program, in New Delhi.
Honoring Our Outstanding Employees- Deputy Secretary Bruce Andrews presented awards to outstanding employees
at the Commerce Department’s 66th annual Gold and Silver Honor
Awards Ceremony. The Gold and Silver Honor Awards are the highest honor that
the agency can give to a Commerce Department employee.
America’s
Economic Resurgence: Invest in the U.S.A.- The 2015 SelectUSA Summit Agenda-
President Obama is hosting the second SelectUSA
Investment Summit, which is right around the corner. On March
23-24, more than 2,500 people from around the world and every corner of the
United States will gather in Washington to explore opportunities to grow their
businesses.
Head
Health Challenge III- Dr.
Willie E. May, Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for Technology and Standards
and Acting Director, National Institute of Standards and Technology announced a
new public-private partnership, along with the National Football League, GE,
and Under Armour. This
unusual group of players is launching an open innovation competition to advance
materials that better absorb or dissipate energy.
New
Technologies Bring New Opportunities and New Risks: Vetting Mobile Apps- Technologies introduce
new capabilities and even new ways of conducting business, but they also may
introduce new risks that must be carefully assessed by security and privacy
professionals. NIST published guidance to help government agencies perform
security and privacy assessments on mobile apps. While intended for a
government audience, their guidance can also benefit private industry app
developers and enterprise security professionals.
Counties as Partners in Investment Decisions-NACo’s 2014 County Economic
Tracker- To
better understand the dynamics within each county economy, the National
Association of Counties (NACo) released the County Economic Tracker: Progress
through Adversity, an analysis of the recovery patterns across the 3,069 county
economies in 2014. The conditions of a county economy can constrain and
challenge county governments, residents and businesses, while also providing
opportunities.
U.S. Manufacturing Attracts Foreign Investment- The U.S. has been the world’s
largest recipient of foreign direct investment (FDI) since 2006, according to
an October 2013 White House report. The manufacturing industry is the largest
beneficiary of FDI in the United States, accounting for more than one-third of
that investment, according to data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
U.S.
Census Bureau Releases Key Statistics for Super Bowl XLIX- To commemorate Super Bowl XLIX, the U.S. Census Bureau has compiled a
collection of facts examining the demographics of the host metropolitan area,
as well as the metro areas represented by the two participants — the New
England Patriots and the Seattle Seahawks.
Top
5 Reasons to Apply to be an IMCP Designated Community- The Economic Development Administration (EDA)
announced the next round of competition under the Investing in Manufacturing
Communities Partnership (IMCP) initiative. IMCP is designed to revolutionize
the way federal agencies leverage economic development funds. It encourages
communities to develop comprehensive economic development strategies that will
strengthen their competitive edge for attracting global manufacturer and supply
chain investments.
Percentage
of Children Living in Owner-Occupied Homes Still Down From Prerecession Levels
- Census Bureau Demographer Emily Schondelmyer writes that homeownership is a
key asset and financial investment for many families, and it also plays an
important role in the stability of children’s lives.
Statistical
Definition of ‘Family’ Unchanged Since 1930 -Historian David Pemberton
writes that the Census Bureau’s definition of “family” varied greatly from 1860
to 1930, but has remained steady since then.
The Economic and Statistics Administration wrote Data
Snapshot of the Week: Baby, It’s Could Outside on their blog this week.
The Bureau of Economic Analysis wrote GDP
Increases in Fourth Quarter on their blog this week.
New orders for
manufactured durable goods in December decreased $8.1 billion or 3.4
percent to $230.5 billion. Shipments of manufactured durable goods in December,
up following two consecutive monthly decreases, increased $2.6 billion or 1.1
percent to $246.8 billion.
Sales of new single-family
houses in December 2014 were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of
481,000. This is 11.6 percent above the revised November 2014 estimate of
431,000.
The
homeownership rate in the fourth quarter 2014 was 64.0 percent, down 1.2
percentage points from the fourth quarter 2013 rate of 65.2 percent. The homeownership
rates in the Northeast, Midwest and South were lower than the rates in the
fourth quarter 2013, while the rate in the West was not statistically different
from the rate a year ago.
Gross Domestic Product- Real gross domestic product -- the value of
the production of goods and services in the United States, adjusted for price
changes -- increased at an annual rate of 2.6 percent in the fourth quarter of
2014, according to the "advance" estimate released by the Bureau of
Economic Analysis. In the third quarter, real GDP increased 5.0 percent.
Commerce Data in the News:
The Bureau
of Economic Analysis’ data on today’s GDP report was highlighted in the New
York Times article: U.S.
Economy Slowed in 2014, but Spending Boomed; Washington Post article: U.S.
Economy Grew at 2.6 Percent Pace in Fourth Quarter of 2014; and The Wall
Street Journal: U.S
Economic Growth Slows to 2.6% in Final Months of 2014
The Economics and Statistics Administration’s Under
Secretary for Economic Affairs Mark Doms’ Business Forward’s Friday Conference
Call on Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was
featured in Reuter’s What to Watch in the Day Ahead and in Politico’s
Morning Money.
CBS News cites
the Census Bureau’s report on families and living arrangements to write that
economic recovery is failing to reach families at the lower end of the economic
spectrum in the article, 1
in 5 American Kids Rely on Food Stamps.
The New York Daily
News cites Census Bureau statistics on marriage, living arrangements and
business revenue to write that nearly 5,800 Americans got married each day and
Ohio, Oklahoma and Colorado have cities named Loveland in the article, Americans
Will Spend Nearly $19 Billon for Valentine’s Day.
Dailyyonder.com
cites the Census Bureau’s Manufactured Homes Survey to write that new sales of
portable housing in 2014 will increase to an estimated 58,000 homes - up from
56,300 in 2013 - in the article, The
Hidden High Costs of Mobile Homes.
Data Releases Next Week: Personal Income and Outlays: December (BEA); Construction Put in Place:
December (Census); Manufacturers’ Shipments, Inventories
and Orders: December (Census); U.S. International Trade in Goods and
Services: December (BEA and Census)
On
Tuesday, Commerce Chief Information Officer Steve Cooper and Deputy Chief Data
Officer Lynn Overmann will participate in a panel discussion at the Adobe
Digital Government Assembly.
Also
on Tuesday, NIST Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office Director
Michael Molnar will give remarks on the Cybersecurity in Direct Digital
Manufacturing symposium at the NIST headquarters.
On Wednesday, Census Bureau Director John Thompson will
speak about 2020 Census and other survey issues pertaining to Native Americans
during the 2015 National American Indian Housing Council Legislative Conference.
On Thursday, MBDA National Director Alejandra Castillo will give a keynote
address about small business subcontracting at the TRI-Association Small
Business Advisory Panel (TRIAD) Conference, hosted by the National Defense
Industrial Association in conjunction with the American Institute of
Architects.
Additionally
on Thursday, NTIA Director of Privacy Initiatives John Verdi will to talk about
privacy policy during in a panel discussion entitled, "Beyond the Privacy
Policy: Moving from Compliance to Stewardship,” as part of the Online Trust
Alliance’s Data Privacy & Protection Day.
On Friday, Secretary Pritzker will meet with business
leaders in New York City to discuss the state of the economy and the
Administration’s agenda to build on success.
Also on Friday, Assistant Secretary for Economic Development Jay Williams will
participate in an in-studio interview with Sirius XM on the Maggie Linton to
discuss his role with EDA and his perspective on how struggling cities can turn
their fortunes around and highlight the auto industry.
Secretary Pritzker and Tony Fadell, CEO of
NEST, meet in her office for a demonstration and a talk about America’s innovation economy.
Bonus Photo of the Week:
Photo Slideshow of the Commerce Department’s
66th annual Gold and Silver Honor Awards
Ceremony
Samuel Berger, Chair of Albright
Stonebridge Group, tells us why the SelectUSA Summit is the
perfect opportunity for dialogue between foreign and domestic companies.
Rushing
Phoenix — The Census Bureau looks ahead to Super Sunday by calculating the
number of people from King County, Wash. (home of the Seattle Seahawks) and
Suffolk and Norfolk counties, Mass. (home of the New England Patriots) who
migrated to Maricopa County, Ariz. (site of Super Bowl XLIX) from 2008 to 2012.
| 
Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.
