In case you’re wondering what the top three issues are right now in D.C., they are 1.) jobs, 2.) jobs and 3.) jobs. With unemployment nationally at 9.7 percent and substantially higher in some states (Michigan tops out at 15.6 percent), members of Congress and the Administration are focused on getting the economic engine roaring again, saving existing jobs and creating new high-paying ones. AmCham Shanghai feels very strongly that the United States is behind the curve on a tremendous opportunity for job creation – exports, particularly by U.S. small and medium-sized enterprises.

We have found in some of our meetings that members of Congress and their staffs do not always understand the important and valuable roles that government entities such as the U.S. Commercial Service (USCS) play in facilitating exports of U.S. goods and services. Given how much Congress and the Administration have on their plate, funding for export promotion programs may seem relatively small – the USCS budget this year is $237 million) – but they can have a tremendous impact. In fact, the World Bank estimates that for every one dollar spent on export promotion programs, forty dollars in exports are generated, and when the money is targeted towards developing economies in Asia, it’s one hundred dollars in sales per one dollar spent. We will continue to share our message with Congress, the Administration and other groups to raise awareness and build support for the bills I mentioned in an earlier post, and encourage companies that have benefitted from these programs to share their stories with their representatives and senators.

On another note, members of the delegation shared their on-the-ground perspective as part of an event organized by the East West Center. A wide range of attendees from the business, academic, public policy worlds as well as from government were in attendance. It was a great opportunity for us to share out message about U.S. competitiveness and the importance of the U.S.-China commercial relationship.