Talking Trade

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Asian Insiders Partner Primadi Soerjosoemanto shares insights on business opportunities in Indonesia.  As the world’s fourth most populous country, Indonesia has a growing economy that’s attracting investment from many global companies, Soerjosoemanto explained.  He said policies advanced by the country’s government have drawn investment from around the wo...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rapport International owner Wendy Pease shares insights on the translation and interpretation industry.  The business offers written translation, spoken interpretations and other communications services for businesses, helping its customers to reach international markets. Pease discusses how technologies such as Google Translate have influenced this work. ...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” co-hosts Sandi Siegel and Ken Wasylik interview Ian Coxhead, senior research fellow for the Institute of Developing Economies in Tokyo, Japan, about trade policy and Asian economics. Coxhead, a former host of the show, shares his perspective on China’s economy, noting its central economic role for other nations in Asia.  “Before the global financial crisis...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Canadian Consul General Aaron Annable shares the latest figures illustrating Canada’s trade relationship with Wisconsin.  According to Annable, 174 Canadian companies currently operate in the state, employing more than 22,000 Wisconsin workers. Annual trade between Canada and the state reached $14.7 billion in 2022, marking a 13 percent increase from the p...

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” Croix Valley Foods owner Damon Holter discusses the company’s history, successes and plans for future expansion.  The Hudson-based business operates out of a 20,000-square-foot facility where it makes barbecue sauces, steak sauces, marinades, dry rubs and bloody mary seasonings. “It’s been very successful, and we continue to thrive here in the U.S. and abr...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” international trade consultant Chris Wojtowicz of the Small Business Development Center highlights resources available to companies in the state.  “Wisconsin has a wonderful, really dynamic ecosystem of help for exporters,” he said.  He touches on support offered by local chambers of commerce, economic development officials and state agencies such as DATCP...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Port of Milwaukee Director Jackie Carter discusses plans to develop a new cruise ship dock, commodity shipping and more.  “We are the northernmost point that can access the Mississippi River … We can get down to the Gulf of Mexico, we can get through the seaway, so from the East Coast there’s commodities that come in,” she said. “So there’s a lot of differ...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rural Export Center Director Heather Ranck highlights exporting opportunities and resources for rural companies.  This North Dakota-based national research center is part of the U.S. Commerce Department, and focuses on assisting small businesses in rural parts of the country with market research and other support.  “There are three main barriers to exporti...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing and Productivity CEO Buckley Brinkman discusses how the center prepares businesses for exporting.  He says the center’s ExporTech program helps manufacturers develop an exporting plan in 90 days that can be implemented immediately.  “It’s really a strategic submersion, where you really get to the point where you understan...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Administrator Adam Tindall-Schlicht underlines the importance of Great Lakes shipping for the Midwest economy.  He also highlights room for growth in the region, noting the amount of vessel traffic through these waterways could be doubled with “no operational impact” on U.S. and Canadian ports there.  “Now, we wa...

 In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Pawan Bhatnagar of Kasvu Consulting and Asian Insiders touts the strength of the Indian economy.  He says India has “proven to be remarkably resilient in the face of the headwinds” facing global markets, pointing to inflation, the war in Ukraine and other factors.  “India is on track to become the world’s third-largest economy by ‘27, surpassing Japan and...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” MI Group Senior Advisor Terry Dittrich discusses the path ahead for rebuilding infrastructure in Ukraine.  While the war between Russia and Ukraine rages on, Dittrich says reconstruction planning has already begun, noting “if you wait, you’ll be too late.” He shares insights from a recent conference held in Poland focused on these efforts.  “The bottom lin...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Armada Corporate Intelligence Chief Economist Chris Kuehl discusses a recent shift in the global economic outlook.  “If people were listening to the commentary even a few weeks ago, it was pretty doom and gloom,” Kuehl said. “It was looking at 2023 as a year of serious recession, maybe starting in first and second quarter and extending through the year.” ...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rebekah Sweeney of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association discusses the “recipe for success” for dairy exports in 2022.  Sweeney, the group’s senior director of programs and policy, says last year was “an outstanding year” for U.S. dairy with more than $9.6 billion in exports.  “That represents a 25 percent increase overall, and creates a new record both...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Orbis Corporation Senior Director of Global Logistics Mike Heindselman says trade compliance efforts need to be company-wide to be effective.  “There’s no compliance without teamwork,” he said. “This can’t be one faction, or one department, or one functional area of a company that’s leading the charge on that. It has to be multiple areas that understand th...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” recently retired Trek Bicycle Corporation executive Maureen Muldoon discusses industry trends and how the company weathered COVID-19.  Muldoon, who was the vice president of international business development for the Waterloo-based bike maker, highlights the “bike boom” seen early in the pandemic.  “They wanted to get bikes for their kids so they could do...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Asia Society Policy Institute Vice President Wendy Cutler says it’s unlikely that tariffs on Chinese goods will be lifted anytime soon.  She discusses the recent news that tariff exclusions on several hundred products have been extended for another nine months after being set to expire at the end of last year.  “But we’re talking about 352 products out of...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company President Steve Wallace discusses challenges associated with growing the Milwaukee-based chocolate business.  The company’s products are processed and produced in Ghana, one of the world’s largest producers of cocoa.  “Overcoming history was difficult … the politics and the economics were very much centered on getting things che...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” former diplomat Andy Rothman of the firm Matthews Asia highlights the benefits of U.S. engagement with China and says an initially bumpy transition from strict COVID-19 protocols will improve next year. Rothman urges continued engagement, including international investment and trade, as well as academic exchanges, partnering on innovations in science and m...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Europartnerships Managing Director Mark Dodsworth says businesses in the United Kingdom “have been hit very hard” by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and Brexit.  “These have caused a number of serious disruptions, which have led to, for example, 11 percent inflation as of today,” he said. “Rising interest rates, exchange rate volatility, supply shortages,...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Trade Acceptance Group Principal Bruce Glaub outlines the benefits of export credit insurance.  If an exporter isn’t paid by a client, the insurer will pay out a percentage of that unpaid amount, Glaub explained. That’s useful at the international level because exporters have fewer options for recouping their losses from outside the country, he said.  “Rat...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Michael Best Strategies Principal Mike Dankler says a federal review of Section 301 tariffs on China could be “a sign of some tariff-liftings to come.” Federal officials recently opened a comment period on these tariffs, and Dankler says Michael Best Strategies has been encouraging clients to apply to submit comments on this process.   “I think there’s a l...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Mark Rhoda-Reis of DATCP discusses another potentially record-setting year for Wisconsin ag exports.  Rhoda-Reis, the director of the agency’s International Agribusiness Center, said the state set a new record with $3.94 billion in ag exports in 2021, marking an 18 percent increase over the prior year.  “And we’d had some challenging years, so that was goo...

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Cohen Group Associate Vice President Damian Felton explains the implications of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act on international commerce.  The act aims to bolster U.S. prohibitions on importation of goods from the Xinjiang region of China, according to co-host Sandi Siegel of M.E. Dey & Co. Felton explains the law prohibits imports of any produ...

In the latest episode of "Talking Trade," Briggs & Stratton legal executive Jennifer Jin discusses the impact of trade sanctions on manufacturing supply chains. Jin holds the position of senior counsel, global compliance, contract and litigation for the Wauwatosa-based manufacturer. She shares her perspective with hosts M. E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel and Katie Henry, exec...