Exports and Services

Michael J. Ferrantino, Danielle Trachtenberg, Alison Weingarden, 5 August 2010Can increasing US exports create US jobs? Manufactures dominate US exports, but US manufacturing employment is declining. This column suggests that increased US exports are unlikely to lead to dramatic manufacturing employment gains, but employment in related services sectors may improve. Full Article: Can the US raise employment with more exports?

Ryan Avent remarked earlier today that “Something about the word ‘manufacturing’ makes people lose their analytical senses.” I tend to agree. I think the first step to showing the fly out of the bottle on a lot questions related to manufacturing is to interrogate the concept and note that it’s not very rigorously defined.

AFTER the winter gloom that enveloped the British economy last year, with GDP dropping in the final quarter, there have been brighter signs of late. Business spirits are rising and the latest monthly figures for the public finances were better than expected. The immediate threat from the euro crisis has become less existential. But even if Britain does dodge a double-dip recession the bigger issue, both for hard-hit households and a government struggling to contain public borrowing and debt, is just how fast the economy can grow in the aftermath of the financial crisis.

The notion of the slow death of the US manufacturing sector has been an ongoing point of debate since the onset of the recession in 2008.

Guest post by Mark Doms, Chief EconomistEarlier today, the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released a report showing that the private sector added 172,000 jobs last month, and overall employment rose by 163,000. While there’s more work to be done, the economy is creating jobs on a consistent basis.  The economy has added private sector jobs for 29 straight months, for a total of 4.5 million jobs.  In fact, since the beginning of the year, the economy has added over 1.1 million private sector jobs. Today’s employment report provides further evidence that the U.S. economy is continuing to recover from the deepest recession since the Great Depression. Additionally, the BLS report also showed that the manufacturing sector continues to be a bright spot, which is especially important for middle class families, because these jobs pay high wages and provide high levels of benefits.  The good news is that the U.S. manufacturing sector’s recovery continues: 532,000 new manufacturing jobs have been created over the past 30 months, with 25,000 being added in July. In terms of production, manufacturing output is up 19.8 percent from the trough reached in June 2009.  A part of manufacturing that has been consistently strong is the motor vehicles and parts industry which has added 165,000 jobs since June 2009.   Further, production of cars and trucks in the U.S. reached 10.5 million units at an annual rate in June, a sharp contrast to the shockingly low level of 3.7 million units witnessed in January 2009.  To continue the revival in manufacturing jobs and output, it is crucial that we implement President Obama’s proposals providing tax incentives for manufacturers, supporting training for the workforce, creating manufacturing hubs, and ending tax breaks for companies that send jobs overseas and provide tax incentives for companies bringing jobs back to the United States.

Obama at the SOTU: "If you’re an American manufacturer, you should get

The Census Bureau reported today on third quarter fina

Guest blog by Nicole Lamb-Hale, Assistant Secretary for Manufacturing and Services Today, I joined members of the President’s Export Council (PEC), U.S. and Canadian officials and U.S. and Canadian businesses to discuss border trade opportunities and challenges between American and Canadian companies. Canada and the United States share a unique relationship = we share not only borders, but economies.Canada and the United States’ economies are greatly intertwined. The two nations share the world’s largest and most comprehensive trading relationship, which supports millions of jobs in each country. However, Canada and the United States don’t simply trade goods with each other: we build things together and rely on each other’s markets to design and build products that compete in global markets. In 2010, U.S. Exports to Canada were worth $249.1 billion, 19 percent of total U.S. exports. These exports include motor vehicles and parts, agricultural and construction machinery, computer equipment, iron and steel, basic chemicals and petroleum and coal products.  The Administration will continue to work hard to help Michigan companies grow by breaking into foreign markets, increasing exports and creating jobs. The simple fact is that the more American – and Michigan – companies export, the more they produce. The more they produce, the more workers they need. And that means jobs. Good paying jobs here at home.