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A monthly partnership publication of
the Louisiana Department of Economic Development
the New Orleans U.S. Export Assistance Center
and the World Trade Center of New Orleans |
Past Issues |
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
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COMMERCE
REDUCES FEES FOR STORM-AFFECTED EXPORTERS
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FRENCH
AMERICAN CHAMBER ANNUAL DINNER ON JANUARY 18
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EXPORT-IMPORT LUNCHEON WORKSHOP ON JANUARY 19
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WTC
SPRING LANGUAGE CLASSES TO BEGIN JANUARY 22
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JANUARY 24
FORUM ON SOUTH LOUISIANA PLANNING PROCESS
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UPCOMING WAC/N.O. EVENTS
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J. DWIGHT LEBLANC, JR. ELECTED 2007 WTC PRESIDENT
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2007
LOUISIANA INTERNATIONAL TRADE DIRECTORY
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OPEN HOUSE AT INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL OF LOUISIANA
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MOBILE CHAMBER BRIEFING ON DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
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FEBRUARY 8
INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK SEMINAR
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ENVIRONMENTAL STUDY FOR PANAMA CANAL EXPANSION
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MEXICO TO BUILD LNG FACILITIES IN MANZANILLO
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PROJECTS IN
MALI PRESENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR LOUISIANA
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INDIA
HOLDS OPPORTUNITIES FOR U.S. EXPORTERS
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| The Commerce Department’s U.S. & Foreign Commercial Service (USFCS) will
maintain the significant cost reductions for several of its export programs
for U.S. businesses affected by 2005’s Gulf Coast hurricanes in order to
encourage continued recovery through exports.
“With 95% of the world’s consumers outside of the United States, we must
ensure that businesses affected by these major hurricane disasters can
continue selling internationally, “ said Israel Hernandez, Assistant
Secretary for Trade Promotion and Director General of the USFCS. “The Bush
Administration is committed to giving the businesses all the tools needed to
help them expand their export sales.”
The reduced fees will remain available until all funds reserved for the
program have been spent. For U.S. companies that produce goods or services
in U.S. Declared Hurricane Major Disaster Areas, the USFCS International
Partner Search, International Company Profile and Gold Key Service fees will
remain at 50% of the usual cost:
- The Gold Key Service (GKS) is a matchmaking service provided by all
commercial sections of the USFCS at U.S. embassies and consulates in more
than 80 countries. It brings together U.S. exporters and potential foreign
business partners.
- The International Partner Search (IPS) locates qualified foreign
distributors and agents and provides listings to the requesting U.S.
company.
- The International Company Profile (ICP) conducts background checks and
provides American firms with information on the good standing of potential
foreign business partners.
In addition, the cost of Commercial Service trade missions will remain
discounted to an amount equal to 50% of the aggregate cost of a one-day Gold
Key Service in each of the mission stops. Firms participating in this
program may receive no more than one each of the following at the reduced
cost: IPS, ICP, and trade missions. Companies may receive no more than three
GKSs at the reduced cost.
With its network of offices across the U.S. and in more than 80
countries, the U.S. Foreign Commercial Service utilizes its global presence
and international marketing expertise to help U.S. companies sell their
products and services worldwide. In 2005, the U.S. Commercial Service helped
generate nearly 12,500 export successes worth billions of dollars in U.S.
export sales.
Currently, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has designated
U.S.-Declared Hurricane Major Disaster Areas in parts of six states,
including North Carolina, Florida, Mississippi, Alabama, Texas and
Louisiana. Over 50 U.S. businesses in affected areas have taken advantage of
this program since it was first offered in March of 2006. To find your
nearest U.S. Export Assistance Center, visit
www.export.gov.
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| The French American Chamber of Commerce, Louisiana Chapter will hold its
Annual Membership Dinner at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday, January 18 at Dominique’s
Restaurant in the French Quarter. The program will include a welcome
cocktail, a four-course dinner with carefully selected wines, and a guest
speaker. Dominique’s restaurant is located in the Maison Dupuy Hotel at 1001
Rue Toulouse and is the 2005 recipient of the prestigious DiRoNA Award for
2005. The FACC Annual Dinner is a members-only event and seating is limited.
To make reservations for the dinner or to become a FACC member, contact the
French American Chamber at (504) 561-0070 or
info@faccla.com.
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Ruperto Chavarri, Program Director of the Louisiana International Trade
Center/SBDC, and Eugene Schreiber, Managing Director of the World Trade
Center of New Orleans, will conduct a luncheon workshop on “Going Global:
Getting Started in Exporting and Importing” from 12:00 noon to 2:00 p.m. on
Friday, January 19, in Suite 2900 of the WTC. The seminar will focus on the
fundamentals of an international transaction and present an overview of the
basic import-export process. To register for the workshop, call the WTC at
(504) 529-1601, ext. 222, or click
here. |
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| The World Trade Center’s spring session of foreign language classes,
conducted by the faculty of Multi-Language Solutions (MLS) and held at the
WTC, will start the week of January 22. The emphasis is on business usage
and conversation. The course will last eight weeks: classes will meet twice
a week for one-and-a-half hours per class. The following languages will be
offered: Spanish, French, German, Italian, English as a Second Language, and
other languages upon request depending on the number of interested
participants. Tuition is $245 for WTC members and their spouses ($490 for
non-members). A one-time textbook/multi-media materials fee is $95. Free
parking is available in the WTC Garage. Registration will close on January
10. To register, call MLS at (504) 415-4077. |
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| Peter Calthorpe of Calthorpe Associates of Berkeley, California, the
consultant on long-term regional planning to the Louisiana Speaks regional
planning initiative, will speak at a January 24 luncheon program to be held
at the World Trade Center’s Plimsoll Club in New Orleans. Calthorpe will
discuss how a regional vision can move all of southern Louisiana forward by
coordinating business, government, and citizens around common goals. Members
of the community are invited to participate and hear more about this vital
effort and how they can have input into the process.
The January 24 program is part of a three-week-long series of community
forums to be held around the state by Louisiana Speaks (www.louisianaspeaks.org),
a multifaceted planning process that is working toward the development of a
sustainable, long-term vision for South Louisiana. This work combines the
efforts of local, state, and federal partners, along with many experts,
stakeholders and citizens into a comprehensive approach.
Louisiana Speaks addresses issues that concern every person in South
Louisiana related to better access to good jobs, safe housing, education,
and way of life. The area's wetlands and levees cross parish lines, and
along with highways, railways, and waterways, they create a network that
connects the entire region.
For additional information and to register for the January 24 luncheon
program, click here, or
call the WTC at (504) 529-1601, ext. 222.
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| January 16 - “Two Different Visions of the U.N.” at Loyola University
from 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. featuring Pierre-Edouard Deldique, a journalist who
follows the U.N. for Radio France International (RFI). For details, call the
WAC/N.O. office at 523-2201 or visit
www.wacno.org.
February 1 - PubNite from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Location TBA.
February 1 - 4 - “Bridging the Desert: The Middle East in the Next
Decade,” 2007 National Conference of the World Affairs Councils of America,
Washington, D.C. For details, see the December 2006 newsletter on the WAC/N.O.
website at www.wacno.org or access
www.worldaffairscouncils.org.
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| The Board of Directors of the World Trade Center has elected J. Dwight
LeBlanc, Jr. as President of the WTC for 2007. Mr. LeBlanc is a partner with
the law firm of Chaffe, McCall, Phillips, Toler and Sarpy.
Other WTC officers elected for 2007 are: Chairman - Charles W. Nelson (Waldemar
S. Nelson & Co.); President-elect Ronnie Kole, Morrow Management, Inc.; Vice
Presidents - Leon R. Fulton, Fulton, Johnson, Newman & Pittman Insurance
Agency; Ray Liuzza, Holiday Inn Select; Constance C. Willems, McGlinchey Law
Firm; Treasurer, Bobby Brannon, Ochsner Clinic Foundation; Secretary, Philip
Lorio, III, Deutsch Kerrigan & Stiles, LLP; and Managing Director for Trade,
Eugene J. Schreiber.
New Directors elected to the WTC Board are: Manuel F. Blanco, Atlantis
International; Boyd R. Boudreaux, Fidelity Homestead Association; Tracie L.
Boutte, Entergy New Orleans, Inc.; Troy A. Carter, Policy & Planning
Partners, LLC; Dennis Crawford, 1st Financial Resources; Paul S. Graffeo,
Professional Security Training, Inc.; Jim Hoskins, Harrah’s New Orleans
Casino; Scott P. Howard, Regions Bank; R. Andrew Jardine, Smith Barney,
Inc.; David W. Kearney, The Kearney Companies; Thomas Kitchen, Stewart
Enterprises; Fred H. Myers, F. H. Myers Construction; John T. Nesser, III,
McDermott International, Inc.; John Sauger, The Shaw Group; Diane
Schexnayder, W. R. Zanes & Co. of Louisiana, Inc.; James E. Szeszycki,
Hotard Coaches; and Jan Tanner, Capital One.
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| The WTC is in the process of updating the Louisiana International Trade
Directory, the official import-export directory of Louisiana. The directory
is published by Louisiana Economic Development, the New Orleans U.S. Export
Assistance Center, and the World Trade Center. It contains over 1,700
detailed listings of Louisiana exporters, trade services, trade
organizations, and other valuable information. The directory is available in
hard copy annually, on a disk that is updated monthly, and as a searchable
database on the WTC’s website at
www.wtcno.org/webdata/litdsearch.html. The new 2007 edition will
be ready in February. If you are engaged in international trade and are not
currently listed in the directory and would like to be listed, please fill
out an online form at
www.wtcno.org/litd/litd-form.htm, or contact the WTC at (504) 529-1601,
ext. 254.
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| The International School of Louisiana (ISL), the only tuition free,
multi-language immersion school in the state, is holding an open house for
prospective Kindergarten students from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon on Saturday,
January 13 at 1400 Camp Street in New Orleans. Students at ISL are
introduced to the world’s rich cultural heritage through a rigorous and
expansive education taught in either French or Spanish by native-speaking
teachers. At ISL, children learn a second language naturally, through
everyday conversation and classroom instruction. With an emphasis on
international awareness, the celebration of diversity and community
responsibility, ISL’s unique curriculum strengthens basic academic skills as
it prepares students for success in today’s worldwide marketplace. Foreign
language skills are not necessary to apply for Kindergarten. ISL is a
tuition-free, independent school chartered by the State of Louisiana.
Additional information is available by calling (504) 564-1088 or at
www.isl-edu.org.
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| The Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce cordially invites interested
Louisiana companies to attend a luncheon briefing on the Dominican Republic
at 11:45 a.m. on January 17 at the Chamber. The focus of the briefing will
be to discuss a trade mission to Santo Domingo on May 20-23. Mr. Bill
Malamud, President of the American Chamber of Commerce in Santo Domingo,
will be the keynote speaker at this event. The Dominican Republic is the
sixth largest trading partner of the United States in the Western
Hemisphere, after Canada, Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela and Colombia. Seventy
percent of consumer goods imported into the Dominican Republic are from the
United States. Contact Bridgette Clark at (251) 694-0702 or
BClark@mobilechamber.com if
you wish to attend the January 17 briefing.
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| The Inter-American Develop0ment Bank (IDB) is holding a Business Seminar
on Thursday, February 8 on “Sustainable Development: A Look at Projects in
Environment, Tourism, Natural Disaster Prevention, Sanitation, and Rural
Development” at the Bank’s Washington, D.C. headquarters. The seminar will
cover projects that are currently being prepared or in execution in the
fields noted above and how they relate to each other, as many projects cut
across several sectors.
The IDB Business Seminars are a unique opportunity to meet project
specialists and hear them describe a variety of operations being financed by
the Bank in the region, as well as identifying consulting and equipment
needs. The February 8 seminar also offers an excellent networking
opportunity, with other firms attending the seminar. The registration fee of
$225 includes a breakfast and lunch, seminar sessions, publications, and a
briefing folder. A special price is available for international
organizations and government employees. For more information on this program
and to register, go to
www.iadb.org/biz.
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| The Panama Canal is soliciting bids for preparation of the general study
concerning the environmental impact of the construction of the Canal’s new
set of locks to be built on the Pacific and Atlantic entrances of the
waterway. This is a $5.3 billion project that includes dredging, dry
excavation and the construction of the third set of locks. This is Panama’s
most important project and one of the largest in Latin America. The deadline
is January 12, 2007. Participating companies must have at least five years
of experience in similar studies. All documents are to be presented in
Spanish except for the executive summary, which should be presented both in
Spanish and English. All participants should be registered with the
Panamanian Environmental Authority and with the Panama Canal Procurement
office. For additional information contact the New Orleans U.S. Export
Assistance Center at (504) 589-6546 or cell (504) 915-3301.
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| Mexico’s Federal Electricity Commission-CFE and the Energy Regulatory
Commission-CRE will announce tenders to build Mexico’s fourth LNG storage
and regasification facility during the first quarter of 2007. The project’s
investment is over US$1 billion, of which 50 percent is estimated to be in
equipment to build the port facility, storage tanks, piping, pumps,
re-condenser, seawater, wastewater treatment plants, seawater vaporizer,
power plant, and metering stations. U.S. companies interested in
participating in tenders should contact the U.S. Commercial Service New
Orleans Export Assistance Center at (504) 589-6546 for more information.
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| The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC), an innovative U.S.
government initiative, provides foreign assistance to developing countries
that are committed to good governance, transparency, sound economic
policies, and the health and education of their citizens. The MCC recently
provided a $461 million grant to Mali, one of the world’s poorest nations.
The grant will be used to improve the airport in that landlocked country to
facilitate better movement of people and products, create an industrial park
to spur the growth of agro-processing and other businesses, and to irrigate
the poorest region to make farming viable. The MCC grant is expected to
improve the Malian standard of living.
American companies doing business in Mali, including those in Louisiana,
stand to benefit. The Baton Rouge-based Schaffer Global Group pioneered the
way for U.S. companies willing to take a risk in investing in Mali when it
brought its technology, know-how and capital to the Segou region of Mali in
the late-1990s. In 2003 and 2004, Schaffer conducted reverse trade missions
for the Ministry of Industry and Commerce, including a personal visit by the
Minister throughout Louisiana. The Minister was introduced to cogeneration
from biomass in the rice sector, aquaculture, sugarcane varieties; toured
the port facilities in New Orleans; and participated in community outreach
programs conducted by Southern University.
With the development assistance of other U.S. government agencies,
Schaffer embarked on a multi-year agricultural and sugarcane variety testing
program and is now in the final stages of launching the Markala Sugar
Project. At completion, the project is slated to create some 8,000 direct
jobs, produce nearly 200,000 tons of sugar, generate over 30 megawatts of
power and enough ethanol to replace up to 10% of the country’s imports of
crude oil.
The MCC grant will provide numerous opportunities for American companies
to collaborate with Malian partners, ranging from new agro-industrial
schemes on 30,000 acres of land to providing professional services and
equipment for the development of the airport and industrial parks. This, in
turn, could have positive ramifications for additional Louisiana companies.
For more information about the business opportunities in Mali, contact
Geralyn Contini, CEO of the Schaffer Global Group, at (225) 343-9262 or via
e-mail at gcontini@fcschaffer.com.
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| India, the world’s fastest-growing free-market democracy, presents
lucrative opportunities for U.S. businesses. Last year U.S. merchandise
exports to India approached $8 billion, which was twice the amount in 2002.
The U.S. Department of Commerce is offering U.S. firms affordable, proven
ways to promote their products and services at Aero India 2007 and thereby
gain valuable business contacts in India’s fast growing aerospace market. A
Bangladesh conglomerate is seeking U.S. companies’ participation in a large
power plant project to provide for the supply, installation, operation and
maintenance of a 55 MW Barge Mounted Power Plant at Noapara, Jessore on a
rental basis for a tenure of 15 years. For specifications and additional
information on these opportunities in India, contact the U.S. Commercial
Service New Orleans Export Assistance Center at (504) 589-6546.
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The Louisiana International Trade Bulletin is a monthly
partnership publication of the:
Louisiana Department of Economic Development
New Orleans U.S. Export Assistance Center
World Trade Center of New Orleans
Information in the Bulletin is gathered from sources
considered to be reliable, but the completeness and accuracy of the information
cannot be guaranteed.
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