New York, N.Y., April 30, 2007 – This year’s World Trade Week celebration in New York City, which takes place May 21-25, will spotlight small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) that have built their businesses by accessing global markets and made the world their oyster.
In the public mind, international trade has become synonymous with big business and big money, seemingly far removed from the needs and concerns of smaller entrepreneurs. Yet recent statistics from the U.S. government tell a different story. For example, SMEs make up over 90 percent of all New York State exporters, and the value of the goods they sell abroad accounts for fully half of the state’s merchandise exports – the third-highest percentage of any state in the nation.
“The question is no longer whether SMEs can go global,” said Peter M. Robinson, president of the United States Council for International Business (USCIB), a lead partner organizations for World Trade Week NYC. “The real questions are when and where.”
Patrick J. Foye, chairman of the Empire State Development Corp./Downstate, and Roy W. Hoffman, managing director for international client service with RSM McGladrey, will serve as co-chairs of World Trade Week NYC 2007, part of a nationwide celebration of international trade, to be observed by business and trade-related organizations across the New York metropolitan area.
Kicking off the week’s events is the annual International Trade Awards Breakfast on Monday, May 21, at the Weissman Center for International Business, Baruch College/CUNY. World Trade Week NYC 2007 organizers are proud to announce the following award recipients:
- S.S. Sampliner & Co., Inc. will receive the Export Achievement Award
- Max Brenner Chocolate will receive the NYC International Achievement Award
- The New York State Small Business Development Center at LaGuardia Community College/CUNY will receive the Export Appreciation Award
- Stewart B. Hauser, Chairman, NY/NJ Foreign Freight Forwarders & Brokers Association, Inc., will receive the Global Trade Award
World Trade Week NYC 2007 is hosted by the New York District Export Council and supported by Presenting Sponsor, RSM McGladrey. The United States Postal Service, Empire State Development, HSBC and Roanoke Trade are also sponsors. Many nonprofit economic development organizations are involved, including several internationally based chambers and trade associations. Complete, up-to-the-minute information on World Trade Week NYC 2007 events and supporting organizations is available at www.worldtradeweeknyc.org.
The United States Council for International Business promotes an open system of global commerce in which business can flourish and contribute to economic growth, human welfare and protection of the environment. Its membership includes more than 300 leading U.S. companies, professional services firms and associations whose combined annual revenues exceed $3.5 trillion. As the exclusive American affiliate of three key global business groups – the International Chamber of Commerce, the International Organization of Employers, and the Business and Industry Advisory Committee to the OECD – USCIB provides business views to policy makers and regulatory authorities worldwide, and works to facilitate international trade.
Contact:
Jonathan Huneke, USCIB
(212) 703-5043
More on USCIB’s Trade and Investment Committee
