WadeTradeNews

A very happy new year, and welcome to the first Wade Trade News import-export bulletin for 2009. The world economy might be struggling, but throughout this year we’ll try to look for some of the positives. This month, we’ve got opportunities to export food from the UK, do business in Latin America and Panama, a useful China wholesale site and details of an invaluable trade directory.

UK Food Exports Booming
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Growing demand for British food and drink from eastern Europe means exports of UK products reached a record high in 2008. Figures from Food From Britain, which helps companies find markets abroad, show that in the first six months of the year food exports rose by 15.5% compared with the same period in 2007. It adds that the weak pound has also helped UK food exports grow.

Alcohol proved to be that UK’s biggest export, up 17.5% year on year - while meat exports grew fast, up to 32% for beef. The fastest growing markets were as follows: Poland 53%. Russia 19.9%. Hungary 58.2%. Czech Republic 45.5%. Netherlands 35%. Ireland 12.4%. France 18.6%. Exports to the USA also grew by almost 3%.

China Exports Fall For The First Time
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China has recorded a fall in exports for the first time in seven years as a result of the global recession, latest figures show. Exports declined in November from the same period a year ago - for the first time since June 2001. Exports dropped by 2.2%, while imports shrank by 17.9% as Chinese consumer spending slumped. But China still reported a record monthly trade surplus of US$40.1 billion as the fall in imports was larger than the fall in exports. The country’s economy is still expected to show growth of about 9% this year - and the trade surplus in the year to the end of November rose to US$278.7 billion, up over US$10 billion from the previous year.

World Trade Talks Not To Be Restarted
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World Trade Organisation (WTO) chief Pascal Lamy has abandoned his attempts to restart the stalled world trade talks. Lamy has told ambassadors he has decided there is not enough interest amongst major world countries in restarting the Doha round of trade talks. The talks failed earlier this year when countries could not agree on how to end agricultural subsidies and trade barriers. The news came after the WTO held talks with the US, India, China, Brazil and EU. Some commentators believe Pascal Lamy may propose restarting the talks, once the new Obama administration takes control in the US later this month.

Latin America To Weather Financial Crisis Well
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Experts believe that Latin America could weather the world economic problems better than most regions - and may present opportunities for international traders. Latin America, which has seen average yearly economic growth of 5.45% from 2004 to 2007 and an estimated 4.5% in 2008, is likely to see much less growth in 2009 - according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) at www.imf.org. However, the IMF predicted the region’s growth in 2009 is likely to reach 2.5% - with the exception of Mexico whose economy, being closely linked with the US, could decline by 0.9%. The region’s improvements in macro-economic and financial policies and booming trade with emerging economies has diversified its foreign trade, making it less dependent on the USA and Europe.

Opportunities For Trading With Panama
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One country that could fare well in the crisis is Panama. Panama has a service-based economy, accounting for 80% of GDP. Major industries include the Panama Canal (which carries 5% of all world trade and is to be expanded), banking, insurance, shipping registry and medical services. The country has extensive mineral reserves and considerable tourist potential. Panama has enjoyed good economic growth over the last five years, reaching 8.7% in 2006 and 9.2% in 2007. Government forecasts suggest growth has slowed in 2008, but should begin to recover in 2009. The Business Panama Group is a well established group of companies, professionals and alliance partners who promote business, foreign investments, and trade and tourism in Panama by providing information, development and support services: www.businesspanama.com

Trade Tang .... China Wholesale Products Centre
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There are lots of international wholesaling sites about but many of them aren’t very good .... or are even scams. Here’s one that looks useful - Trade Tang, the China wholesale products centre. It’s an online trading portal where you can find Chinese and other worldwide manufacturers, wholesalers and distributors. It has sections for clothing, footwear, baby goods, luggage, cameras, phones, computers, electronics, gifts, home and garden, jewellery and watches, office supplies, sporting goods, toys and many more. Worth a look: www.tradetang.com

Useful Site : The European Business Directory
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Here’s an online business directory which we think you’ll find useful for trading in and with Europe. Europages at www.europages.com is a Europe-wide B2B directory listing (in 25 languages) a massive 1.5 million different companies from all business sectors in over 35 European countries. We particularly liked the accurate search facility which means you can find what or who you want, and screen out what you don’t, making it an invaluable tool for finding new clients, suppliers and partners. Search for anything from chocolate to car parts and you’re sure to find some useful leads, buyers or suppliers!

More Useful Links
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We’re happy to send you these trade tips and news free every month. But there’s lots more Wade World Trade can offer you. If you’re not already signed up to receive this bulletin automatically you can do so here: www.wadetrade.com/tradenewsreg.html. There’s no charge or obligation. To find out more about our latest courses take a look here: www.wadetrade.com/courses.html. For some useful FREE stuff visit here: www.wadetrade.com/free.html.