If you’re one of the millions of Americans headed to Starbucks for a seasonal pumpkin spice latte, the benefits of trade are right in your hand. Whether it’s Starbucks or a boutique coffee shop, the coffee we drink is imported. Because while the United States excels at growing many crops, coffee beans aren’t one of them.
The trend to make your own slime is driving a surge in demand for gallons of school glue. It’s not just an American obsession, slime is having its day around the world. It’s a fun reminder that we can find trade stories in everything.
Every minute and hour count in the aftermath of life-threatening emergencies such as large scale natural disasters. Behind the scenes, private donors and relief organizations work to navigate customs requirements and procedures at the borders of countries struck by disaster. But customs bottlenecks are among the most common obstacles cited by the humanitarian community to delivering aid quickly.
How is bread traded without a Bread Czar or a Minister for Flour? Inspired by the classic essay, I, Pencil, Professor Russ Roberts of Stanford University, offers an engaging and timeless story to explain the economic processes we benefit from daily without realizing.
Foreign direct investment (FDI) is usually measured in the millions, billions, and trillions. In this Cambodian shoe factory, the value to workers and their community can be measured every 374.41 seconds.
The secret to the success of Michele’s Granola is more than a great product. Also instrumental was a little-known, decades-old government initiative – the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) program – aimed at helping small and medium-sized manufacturers grow.
Chilean EdTech start-up, Lab4U, created apps that enable students lacking access to equipment in labs to conduct science experiments using their phones. Demand from abroad encouraged them to scale internationally.
Ever wonder how China feeds its massive population of 1.4 billion? China’s growing population is increasing its appetite for U.S.-grown food. Discover how China’s food imports have risen between 2005 and 2015 from just $6 million to over $300 million by exploring this interactive chord chart.
Trade has been a remarkable engine of economic growth and development, lifting hundreds of millions out of poverty since the birth of the modern trade system in Bretton Woods more than six decades ago. But how can a country trade sustainably, and deliver not only balanced economic benefits to its citizens, but also strengthen social capital and provide responsible environmental stewardship?
According to a new study, reducing tariffs on LED light bulbs by 3.6 percent would save American households $320 million each year. How? Lowering the tariff on imported LED bulbs makes it cheaper to buy them. Lower prices also raises demand, leading to greater usage. Using more energy efficient light bulbs could cut electric bills by $129.6 million and lower the number of kilowatt hours in the United States by 238 million every year.