April a busy month at WTC Delaware | |
T.S. Eliot was wrong. April is not the cruelest month. Certainly not at World Trade Center Delaware. As you will see in the accompanying articles, we provided significant outreach to the Delaware region's community by offering our own events and training, and by working with local, national, and international partners to expand our constituents’ reach across the globe. Our success was recognized by the Delaware House of Representatives declaring April 27th, the anniversary of our founding in 1987, to be World Trade Center Delaware Day.
The Kickoff to the US-Africa Business Summit reminded me just how many advantages that Delaware companies and educational institutions have. We are blessed that Port Wilmington, our Congressional delegation, the African Diaspora community, academic institutions, and individual companies are paving the way for small businesses to import and export with partners in Africa. Our location as the closest port to the Atlantic and logistics infrastructure provide a distinct advantage to African companies wanting to import, export, or establish an operating location in Delaware. We are working with a number of companies and Embassies to do just that. Delaware is the Eastern Gateway to the United States and WTC Delaware is the key™.
As announced at our Kickoff, the Corporate Council on Africa is extending a special registration to WTC Delaware members. Please contact me for additional information.
I was honored to be asked by State Senator Darius Brown to be a panelist at the Opportunity Lives Here Forum this month. Delaware has untapped potential for economic development in what are traditionally overlooked areas of the state. Partnerships among government, industry, not-for-profits, and academia are creating capacity for companies of all sizes, especially smaller businesses, to create and expand their business internationally. Those companies that are led by or employ first- and second-generation Americans will have an advantage. International business is based on personal relationships and cultural understanding. Those Americans with country ties, language, and cultural knowledge are ahead of their competitors. For more information about the Opportunity Lives Here initiative and the Three Rivers Area Economic Development Master Plan Interactive Map, please click here: Opportunity Lives Here (opportunitylivesherede.com).
Last Friday, World Trade Center Delaware again partnered with the US Global
Leadership Coalition and exhibited at the Mid-Atlantic Summit 2024. We are proud to say that we have participated and exhibited with the USGLC and Senator Chris Coons each year. The focus this year was developing a cohesive response to the world’s challenges- through investment and trade, not simply aid, particularly on the continent of Africa. The Summit brings Nobel Laureates, Foreign Ambassadors, US Government policymakers, corporate leaders, and international thought leaders to Delaware to discuss the issues that are affecting the world and the United States. For more information about the USGLC and the Summit, please click here.
Last week, we said goodbye to our Delaware intern Erin McGrellis. To all of you who have commented on the beautiful graphics in our newsletter, flyers, and social media, the credit belongs to her. I am astounded at the ease at which she designed attractive and effective images. She will be a credit to any company’s marketing, communications, or art department.
This also marks the last week of our intern Sena Min. She is returning to South Korea after a short tour of the US. We rely on our interns to conduct country research, provide newsletter content, and technical support. In addition to developing Country Profiles, Sena tackled the update of our Export Guide. She spent countless hours chasing data, interviewing experts and double-checking statistics, regulations, and terms of art. Have a wonderful trip and a productive return to university.
I am happy to report that our new intern, Soo Young, from the WEST program, a partnership between the governments of the United States and the Republic of South Korea, just arrived. We are so pleased that the terms overlap for our two Korean interns, albeit briefly. Please see her biography and picture in this newsletter and be sure to welcome her warmly.
Be sure to join us on May 1 for our Made in USA Compliance webinar with the
US Department of Commerce. This is information critical to the well-being of
any manufacturer, exporter, or retailer. Business services providers such as
attorneys, accountants, financial advisors, bankers, and others also should
attend. To register, visit here.
Nesrin Cakiroglu, our Director of Operations & Training, is joining me in Istanbul from May 11-18 for Trade Winds and meetings at World Trade Center Istanbul. This year’s Trade Winds theme is Access Europe and Eurasia: Explore Business Opportunities in Türkiye and Beyond! We are very excited about the possibilities for Delaware exports in the region extending from Central Europe to Kazakhstan. Please contact Nesrin or me to let us know which countries and sectors are of particular interest to your company.
| |
Carla Sydney Stone
President
| |
Learn more about Port to Port International
| |
Learn more about Delaware Business Times
| |
|
Arkion Life Sciences
Arkion Life Sciences utilizes its roots as a DuPont and ConAgra startup to develop innovative, environmentally friendly solutions. The company focuses on protecting crops, controlling pests in organic farms and orchards, and managing tick and mosquito populations. Through its membership with World Trade Center Delaware, Arkion has gained valuable support for its export endeavors. This partnership has facilitated introductions to key consultants and businesses, leading to successful product exports to South Africa and West African nations like Ghana and Nigeria.
Learn more: www.arkionls.com
| |
|
Somon Steel Corporation
Somon Steel Corporation is committed to building a cutting-edge, 1-million-ton-per-year facility in the U.S. to manufacture top-tier reinforcement products. To achieve this goal, it has established a new corporation in Wilmington. The company’s mission goes beyond simply starting production: It aims to deliver exceptional quality products to the American market, while fostering strategic partnerships to strengthen their overall operations.
Learn more: WTC Business Profile
| |
Legislature honors World Trade Center Delaware | |
|
The Delaware House of Representatives recently honored World Trade Center Delaware by naming April 27 as World Trade Center Delaware Day. The House honored WTC Delaware for earning the Export-Import Bank's REPP Member of the Year award in 2023 and its work providing opportunities and connections to support and grow Delaware businesses. Sponsored by Rep. Jeff Spiegelman, a member of the WTC Delaware board, it passed the House unanimously. Above, President Carla Stone accepts the resolution before the House.
| |
WTC hosts Kickoff to U.S.-Africa Business Summit | |
|
World Trade Center Delaware kicked off the 2024 U.S.-Africa Business Summit season last week with a well-attended event at the University and Whist Club in Wilmington.
Representatives from multiple African nations, Federal and State officials, and business leaders from companies throughout the region were on hand in-person and digitally for the day-long event. It serves as a lead-up to the annual U.S.-Africa Business Summit, to be held this year in Dallas, Texas.
“Africa is the last emerging market and one that has potential for rapid growth,” said former U.S. Ambassador to Botswana and Special Envoy Joseph Huggins in his keynote address. “When is the best time to invest in Africa? Yesterday. When is the next best time? Right now.”
Tony Ceballos, Director of the Philadelphia U.S. Export Assistance Center, U.S. Commercial Service, said that there is a strong upside to U.S. companies wanting to do business in Africa. “The whole world is open for U.S. businesses that export,” he said. “We’ve found that they grow faster and tend to pay higher wages, as well as having a diversified portfolio both domestically and overseas.”
Rashanda Johnson, Business Development Specialist, U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), spoke about the impact of changes in law, husbanded by Senator Chris Coons, that is making it far easier for the US government to become a partner to investment with private companies in Africa. The Better Utilization of Investments Leading to Development Act of 2018 (S.2463, the BUILD Act) established the DFC resulting in the US Government able to make targeted investments to reduce poverty in countries that are critical to our national security.
The U.S. Trade and Development Agency’s Victoria Becker, Country Manager for West Africa, focused on the tools and programs that USTDA has for companies to enter Africa. Companies of all sizes are able to propose projects, bid on overseas projects, contract with USTDA, and participate in a variety of trade missions and learning opportunities. Delaware companies have successfully proposed, bid on, and contracted with USDTA.
The 2024 edition of this annual event featured the growing economies of Djibouti and Cote d’Ivoire. Embassy counselors from both countries spoke in great detail about the opportunities available to Delaware exporters and importers in their nations in the areas of agriculture, infrastructure development, information technology and other key economic sectors.
Professor Ezrah Aharone, the founder of the Center for Global Africa, said that the continent is in the middle of an ongoing transformation. “It’s a new Africa now with a new generation of leaders who are up and coming,” said the former Delaware State University professor, author and academic diplomat. “We can work better with African nations by having a more detailed understanding of things that are important to them. We can also be great facilitators to meet our goals and objectives for the 21st century.”
A number of participants expressed concern about China's developing role in many African nations. Dr. Arahone emphasized that the U.S. has one major advantage over the second largest economy: “The United States has one thing that China just doesn’t have. China doesn’t have nearly 50 million people who are of African descent, and that’s a very important distinction.”
Delaware officials participated in this year’s Summit. Delaware Lt. Gov. Bethany Hall-Long offered greetings and noted that out of the top 25 countries to which Delaware exports, none is based in the African continent. She encouraged the participants to change this. New Castle County Executive Matt Meyers spoke about his own experience as a student and entrepreneur building an e-commerce company in Kenya.
The President of the Corporate Council on Africa, President Florizelle Liser, provided greetings and emphasized the Summit's importance as a forum for learning and establishing and ties with foreign government and business leaders. The 2024 U.S.-Africa Business Summit is scheduled for May 6-9 in Dallas, Texas.
| |
Stone speaks at Opportunity LIVES Here | |
WTC Delaware President Carla Stone was one of the speakers at the recent Opportunity LIVES Here conference in Wilmington. The event, focusing on investment and growth for businesses in the Three Rivers area, was organized by Sen. Darius Brown, the Riverfront Delaware Corporation, and the Delaware River and Bay Authority. | |
Register Today: WTC Events Coming Up | |
Exporting Resources Conference on May 22
Our President, Carla Stone, will be speaking at the "Leveraging Resources to Become a Successful Exporter" free interactive conference coming up on May 22 in Dover. Register to talk with her 1-on-1!
| |
|
Introducing Research & Trade Information Intern Sooyoung Lee | |
|
Sooyoung Lee is World Trade Center Delaware’s new Research & Trade Information Intern. Her interests lie in building frameworks for companies to expand internationally, dissecting industries and markets, and developing actionable insights from data and research.
Expected to graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Global Studies in August 2025, Sooyoung has served in multiple leadership roles, including as president of her university’s student business consulting academy. She collaborated with organizations including the Korea Scholarship Foundation, securing contracts and devising effective business strategies alongside her academy peers. The agency also won victories in marketing and advertising competitions such as the Government Advertising Competition, Local Currency Activation Strategy Contest, and BNK Small Business Supporter initiative.
She was previously an exchange student in Malta in 2021. She enjoys surfing, skiing, running, hiking and yoga, and is a fan of Paul Gauguin's art and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
| |
WSFS Currency Report on Botswana | |
Botswana is recovering from COVID, lower diamond demand, and the growth of lab-grown gems. In this report, WTC Delaware premier member WSFS takes a look at the world’s second-largest diamond producer. | |
Take a look at other IMF data charts for additional insights. | |
Fulton Bank is SBA Export Lender of the Year | |
Congratulations to WTC Delaware member Fulton Bank for being named Export Lender of the Year by the Small Business Administration! Fulton's Export Working Capital Program for small business exporters is typically up to 15 percent of Fulton's SBA loan volume. Fulton Bank vice president Janet Dougherty is on WTC Delaware's board of directors. | |
SBA Assistance for Key Bridge Collapse | |
The U.S. Small Business Administration is offering support for businesses in Sussex, Kent, and New Castle counties that have been affected by the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. Applicants can seek an Economic Injury Disaster Loan of up to $2 million to cover temporary losses of revenue. Click below to learn more about the terms and how to apply. | |
|
People to People International Delaware is designed to promote international understanding and cooperation. Its projects include social events, fundraisers, international student events, and Peace Week. People to People traces its roots to 1956, when President Eisenhower called together 100 top American leaders and later formed the nonprofit organization People to People.
| |
World Trade Center® Delaware is the State’s premier international business resource. We help companies, especially small, medium-sized and emerging enterprises, to grow their international business. We provide trade leads, training programs, job leads, networking, matchmaking, trade mission and reverse trade mission opportunities for Delaware companies. We serve all types of companies in various sectors including agriculture, environmental remediation, IT, medical equipment manufacturing, biopharmaceuticals, financial, legal and real estate services. For more information visit us at www.wtcde.com.
| |
World Trade Center Delaware
42 Reads Way, Suite B
New Castle, DE 19720
ph: 302-656-7905
| |
Copyright © 2024. All Rights Reserved. | | | | |
