UPDATE

The World TradeWinds 2016 'Summer' edition brings you articles from new MBITA members beginning with 'angel' investment opportunities in the global marketplace, an innovative in-home eldercare product, plus EB5 foreign investment opportunities in California real estate. Additional articles on Russian trade opportunities, believe it or not, as well as our periodicals from Tommy's Taglines, and Ayse Oge chimes in on the opportunities in Latin America. Also, see the lead article on the 'Oceans 16' conference in the Monterey Bay on Sep. 19-23 and the 'Blue Silicon Valley' initiative in the Monterey Bay.

MBITA is now forming a division called the 'Blue Silicon Valley Accelerator' that utilizes regional resources to provide mentorship and educational components that facilitate initial funding for marine science start-ups. MBITA additionally has formed business relationships with China's 'Blue Silicon Valley', in Qingdao, Shandong, PRC, to promote bilateral trade and investment between California and Shandong in the in the marine science industries.

MBITA is now taking reservations for a 'Blue Silicon Valley' exhibit booth at 'Oceans 16', plus a 'matchmaking service' for pre-arranged meetings between exhibitors and attendees. Contact the MBITA office at 831-334-2218 USA or email Tony Livoti at tlivoti@mbita.org for further details.

Accelerating the Global Startup

By MBITA member Fred Cohen, Management Analytics

Many large enterprises have a global footprint, but for the startup or small business and their angel investors, it's often difficult to achieve global success because of the complexity of global trade and the difficulty of finding trustworthy global partners. I started a small global business in the 1980s, posting letters at one exchange per week, moving to FAX machines at two exchanges per day, and I now use email and online meetings for real-time interactions.

The efficiencies of information technology and cost differences in labor and material are tremendous, and in some sense, easily gained because people are always willing to sell you things. But the increased market size is even more stunning and far harder to address for the startup and small business. Selling in Europe, the Pacific Rim, Africa, and around the world may work over the Internet for some things, but global sales and support often requires people who live there, know the culture, and have the relationships to help your business flourish.



In the 1980s and 90s I got on the global lecture tour and built relationships with people all over the world, but it took many years to get there. Today, that sort of delay is deadly, especially in trying to grow a startup with investor capital. Investors want timely returns and exits, and building global relationships from scratch just takes too long. The trustworthy path to globalization you need today has to be far more efficient. I build and support relationships with trustworthy people through longstanding relationships with Keiretsu Forum and Webster University, and I invite you to join me in leveraging them for your small or startup businesses and investments.

A true family business, Santa Cruz siblings create innovative products to help families keep aging loved ones at home

The EB-5 program affects California real estate in a major way. Realtors are increasingly shifting their attention towards attracting foreign buyers, and consequently, more foreign capital is being used to develop property in the state. Santa Cruz real estate broker BB Wong has caught on to this new trend, and is utilizing it to sell two development properties in Sonora Ca., and unusual commercial properties in Santa Cruz, Ca.

"So many people are moving from the Bay Area to the foothills to escape the pressures of city life and/or retire," states Ms. Wong as her properties "are ready to be developed into apartments, retirement communities - they are very flexible - but they require a large investment. The EB-5 Program opens up a whole new world of investors for Wong Realtors to contact. Plus, because Sonora, Ca. is considered a high unemployment area, an investor need only invest $500,000 in them to get a green card.



To learn more about the EB-5 program, go to:
http://business.ca.gov/International/EB5Program.aspx
or contact BB Wong at wongrealtor@gmail.com

U.S. companies would be remiss to shy from Russian business opportunity. Russia is a rapidly developing nation of 146 million consumers with a tremendous appetite for U.S. goods and services. Of the BRIC countries, Russia has the highest GDP and disposable income per capita, and over the coming decade Russia is expected to remain a top consumer market of Europe. The current slowing of Russia's robust EU trade creates an opportunity for U.S. companies. Paradoxically, but now is a particularly good time for U.S. business in or trade with Russia.

While U.S. exports to Russia declined in 2015 to $7.1 billion (from slightly over $11 billion in 2013), U.S. exports declined less than those of the EU and thus the U.S. in 2015 actually strengthened its position among Russian trading partners. Companies holding back from business with Russia due to U.S. and international sanctions are misunderstanding the letter and scope of the sanctions, and are missing a unique opportunity.

In several key regards, the opportunities for U.S. companies doing business in Russia under the current sanctions conditions may be better today than they were in 2013. Foremost, EU competition is marginally less, and international shipping and domestic Russia costs (ruble exchange), are less. In addition, Russia is particularly interested to attract new foreign business and investment. Russia remains a challenging market, but for most industry sectors, U.S. opportunity may be improving.

Ah, Grasshopper, "There are 3-sides to every situation-story...Ur side...My side...and WHAT REALLY HAPPENED" American Management Association AXIOM.



Drinking water generated from air environmental-innovation Alert - The advantages to atmospheric water generation are many. Machines can be placed anywhere there is a 110 volt connection. Solar powered cordless versions are also available. The machines do not pull water from sources that may be limited due to drought or other environmental conditions. There is no plastic bottle waste or recycling of plastic bottles. The water quality is impeccable.

Author Glenn Hasek, Publisher & Editor, Green Lodging News, 5-12-2016. Read more.

'Hotel Speak' Traveler Alert - '10 Hotel Secrets from Behind the Front Desk' is a 9-slide deck revealing what the hotel staff may think about your stay, benchmark costs and suggestions to make your check-in and stay and check-out a 'preferred' Guest Experience. The author has worked on the front lines of hotels for more than a decade, starting as a lowly valet in New Orleans and ultimately landing at a front desk in New York City. He's also the author of Heads in Beds: A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles, and So-Called Hospitality and a man with some hospitality secrets to spill."

Mental Floss-The Magazine article, Author Jacob Tomsky, 7-28-2015, republished on msm.com.
Read more.

U$ Dollar Domestic Value Alert - "The value of a dollar differs in every state. While a dollar bill looks and feels the same all over the United States, its value is often very different depending on where it is used. The article is a 51-slide deck of each of the 50-US States having the below listed economic-social metrics and rankings.

Value of a dollar:
Chg. in value of dollar 2008-2013:
Median household income:
Poverty rate:
Author Steven M. Peters, published by 24/7Wall St, 5-17-2016, posted to msm.com. Read more.

China Consumer Global e Transactions with Wechat Alert - Global transactions adds another consumer credit platform 'Wechat Pay' to existing PayPal, Apple Pay and Google Pay. Interesting to know if the China Bank or the People's Bank of China (PBOC) is the account issuer of Wechat transaction funds. Remember credit card transactions differ from debit card bank transactions with VISA, MasterCard, AMEX, Discovery, etc., being that they are 'acquirers' of the credit card transaction, whereas, an underlying credit card issuing bank is the payee of the consumer business transaction.

Author Renee Hartman, published by China Luxury Advisors, 4-5-2016. Read more.

Cybercrime Global Banks Hack Alert - A joint cybercrime operation in Russia has resulted in the arrest of 50 members of a gang suspected of orchestrating the theft of 1.7billion Rubles ($25m; £18m) from banks and financial institutions in Russia. A series of 86 raids took place across 15 separate regions in Russia with footage reportedly showing armed police using battering rams to access the suspects' homes. A recent hack took funds from the Bangladesh account at the NY Federal Reserve Bank. The 'SWIFT EFT request' was for $1Billion, and only by an alert bank staff member was the inconsistency noticed that a lower case letter should have been capitalized and ONLY then was the transfer stopped at $81,000,000.00. SWIFT is the Global Central Banks-Member Banks EFT platform for 11,000 accounts.
Author Jason Murdock, published by International Business Times, 5-20-2016. Read more.

Thomas A. Gardiner is the current California Representative for John Gardiner's Tennis Ranch Foundation

Thomas A. Gardiner has been in the Hospitality Destination Resort business all his life.

Born in Carmel, CA in 1951 and living on the Monterey Bay all his life, his parents John and Barbara Gardiner were recognized in 1957 by Time Magazine for opening the 1st Destination Tennis Resort - Summer Children's Tennis School Camp in the World: The John Gardiner's Tennis Ranch Foundation, a 501(3)c CA-Non-Profit Hospitality & Tourism Careers Development organization in Carmel Valley CA.

Growing up in a family business, doing almost every resort job, becoming the general manager and being recognized by Forbes, Gourmet, Tennis and Town & Country magazines, Mr. Gardiner resigned in 1984 to form TAGCORP Management & Marketing Services Consultant Business.

Latin America experienced a "golden decade" of economic growth of 5.9 percent due to an easy credit and commodity boom that peaked in 2010. However, governments are currently facing daunting challenges, like maintaining stability in a weak economy, dealing with income inequality, and tackling corruption. With Brazil, Argentina, and Venezuela already in recession, the countries are now at a steady pace of 2.5 percent growth; in addition, they also have to satisfy a "new" middle class that emerged during the economic boom period.



The Inter-American Development Bank forecasts a 0.3 percent economic contraction for 2016 due to aging demographics, the slowdown of China's economy and a low demand for Latin American oil, soybeans, copper, and other raw materials - this resulted in the decline of exports and led to many job losses in the region. While they search for new revenue sources to invigorate the economic growth, the Latin American government is limited by increased debt loads and a weak tax collection.

There are two main things that Latin America needs in order to foster innovation and drive economic growth. The first is a comprehensive infrastructure aimed at coordinating efforts between the public and private sector to encourage growth. The second is education, which will allow sufficient people with the proper skill sets to bring about change in the digital economy.

Creating new and exciting programs can bring in more business in different areas of the economy, including healthcare, technology and telecommunications. For example, the Start-up Chile Entrepreneurship Program is a government initiative that is changing the face of entrepreneurship in Latin America. Its main goal is to convert Chile into a hub of innovation. To this end, the Chilean government is providing $40,000 of seed capital, office space and a one-year visa to early-stage entrepreneurs who'd like to come and start their businesses in Chile. According to Forbes.com, since its inception in 2010, the program has hosted 687 entrepreneurs from 35 countries, created 695 jobs and sparked 36 deals with Chilean investors.

The U.S. trade relationship is also crucial to Latin America, as the Chinese demand for commodities weakens and European Union faces a stall in their exports. While Latin American entrepreneurs are finding success in investment, mentoring and inspiration by looking north, there are a number of entrepreneurs from the U.S. who are looking south to Latin America for talent, opportunities and professional growth. Matching the needs of both parties would be beneficial for achieving long-term success.

Ayse Oge is President of Ultimate Trade, International Trade Consulting, Speaking and Training. Ayse Oge is International Trade Consultant, Speaker and Trainer. She has served as an instructor for SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) with the same goal as her focus. Ms. Oge has authored numerous articles and several publications including books, World Smart Veterans: From War to International Trade, Go Global to Win and World Wise Children. Ms. Oge's list of certificates, honors and awards for her leadership and service includes The Business Education State Advisory Committee.

EXIM Announces "Deal of Year" and Chairman's Awards

Washington, DC - On April 8, at its Annual Conference, the Export-Import Bank of the U.S. (EXIM) recognized one American exporter that, with EXIM's help, finalized a transaction recognized as the "Deal of the Year." The Bank also recognized three state-level organizations for their efforts to educate businesses on how EXIM can help employers of all sizes, particularly small- and medium-sized businesses, boost U.S. exports abroad and support American jobs.

Deal of the Year Award: Acrow Bridge

Acrow Bridge is a leading manufacturer and supplier of modular steel bridge systems. Founded in 1951, Acrow built bridges for rapid rehabilitation projects following World War II. Today the company has built bridges in over 80 countries, with more than 1,500 Acrow bridges installed in developing countries since 2007.

With an EXIM-guaranteed $50 million loan extended by Societe Generale to Cameroon's Ministry of Public Works, Acrow shipped 55 American-made bridge sets to Cameroon, and in doing so supported an estimated 200 U.S. jobs in Parsippany, New Jersey; Milton, Pennsylvania; and New Castle, Delaware.

The modular steel bridges, which were prefabricated in the U.S., will contribute to the development of regional trade through the repair and modernization of Cameroon's rural infrastructure networks.

State-backed European and Chinese companies also competed for the project. But, backed by competitive financing from EXIM Bank, Acrow won the contract.

Chairman's Award: Association of Washington Business (AWB)

Founded in 1904, the Association of Washington Business is the oldest and largest business association in Washington state, representing nearly 8,000 small, medium and large employers. The association serves as the state's chamber of commerce and manufacturing association.

Washington is one of the most trade-dependent states in the nation. Since FY 2007, EXIM has authorized approximately $66 billion to support $144 billion in Washington exports.

As such, AWB understands the importance of EXIM for employers of all sizes, and works to educate its member businesses and local economies on the role that EXIM can play in expanding exports.

Chairman's Award: Texas Association of Business (TAB)

Founded in 1922 by two San Antonio businessmen and merging with the Texas Chamber of Commerce in 1995, the Texas Association of Business relies upon its more than 4,000 members to boost the economy and stimulate job growth in Texas.

TAB has worked to increase awareness about the Bank's mission to businesses across the state and educate them on how EXIM can help expand Texas exports.

Texas ranks as the nation's leading exporter, accounting for nearly 18 percent of national exports. In fact, EXIM has authorized approximately $29 billion to support an estimated $33 billion in Texas exports since FY 2007.

Chairman's Award: Texas Association of Manufacturers (TAM)

More than 500 small and large companies from all across the state are members of the Texas Association of Manufacturers. TAM works to educate and empower Texas industry leaders, consumers, and the media with timely perspectives on issues and concerns that impact their industries and their members' capacity to create jobs, and invest in Texas to keep the state prosperous. And as part of that advocacy, TAM educates its membership on the various financing tools available from EXIM designed to help U.S. manufacturers' export.

Conference Roundup

The EXIM Annual Conference Roundup can be viewed on EXIM's website: http://www.exim.gov/events/annual-conferences/2016/conference-roundup

ABOUT EXIM BANK:
EXIM Bank is an independent federal agency that supports and maintains U.S. jobs by filling gaps in private export financing at no cost to American taxpayers. The Bank provides a variety of financing mechanisms, including working capital guarantees and export credit insurance, to promote the sale of U.S. goods and services abroad. Almost ninety percent of its transactions directly serve American small businesses.

In fiscal year 2015, EXIM Bank approved $12.4 billion in total authorizations. These authorizations supported an estimated $17 billion in U.S. export sales, as well as approximately 109,000 American jobs in communities across the country.

Small business exporters can learn about how Ex-Im Bank products can empower them to increase foreign sales by clicking here. For more information about EXIM, visit www.exim.gov.

This press release was published by Exim Bank on January 14, 2016.
View source press release.

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