Talking Trade

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” City of Superior Planning, Economic Development & Port Director Jason Serck discusses upcoming projects at the port and broader economic trends. 

Serck, who is also president of the Wisconsin Commercial Ports Association, shares insights on commodities moving through the port, ranging from stone, coal and clay to grains and more. 

“Pretty robust here, and a good diversity of moving product and actually importing product as well,” he said. 

He also outlines a $23 million port development project overhauling a C. Reiss Company dock at the port, which received $8.3 million in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Maritime Administration as well as state dollars from the state Department of Transportation’s Harbor Assistance Program. 

“It’s a win-win,” he said. “It kicked off in August ahead of schedule because the winter has been very, very favorable. And I think they’re hoping to push a little bit of product through there starting this summer.” 

The podcast also spotlights a major project to replace the aging Blatnik Bridge, which was the subject of a visit from President Joe Biden to Superior earlier this year. 

“It’ll be, by the time we’re done with it, probably a considerable little over $2 billion project, which is huge for our area,” he said. “Putting a lot of people to work.” 

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” Jackie Bojor of the FRD Center in Bucharest, Romania, discusses opportunities in the region for Midwest companies. 

Bojor is the director of business development for the Factor Regional Development Center’s Bucharest location. The advisory firm offers consulting, market research and other services focused on entering new markets and mergers and acquisitions. 

She notes Romania is seeing more activity from American businesses and specialists in clean energy, pointing to investments in small nuclear modular reactor development from an Oregon company called NuScale Power. 

“As U.S. officials have recognized recently, Romania is a regional pillar of stability, energy security and economic development,” Bojor said, adding the country has a “very strong” industrial manufacturing sector that continues to grow. 

American-made vehicles, aircraft, electrical machinery and equipment are among the most in-demand products in the Romanian market, she explained. 

She also said Romania is looking to advance its agricultural industries with more digital technology. 

“In terms of transport and infrastructure, there are billions of euros to be received from the European Union, and this will generate a lot of interest from foreign investors, from foreign manufacturers looking to expand their businesses into Romania,” she said. 

The discussion also touches on potential stability concerns among U.S. companies related to Romania’s proximity to the war in Ukraine. Bojor says Romania is “quite safe” in terms of conflict exposure, noting the eastern European country has been a part of NATO for decades. 

“Practically, we have very strong facilities and a strong presence of NATO members here,” she said. “This is a stable economy, a stable country, and we have seen actually quite a lot of interest from companies which had their operations in the past in Ukraine and also in Russia.” 

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” Matt Umhoefer of the state Department of Transportation discusses Wisconsin’s freight plan and federal infrastructure funding. 

Umhoefer, the economic development section chief for the agency, notes the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law added new items for states to add to their existing freight plans. He discusses the latest iteration of the plan and shares details on the state agency’s future work on that effort. 

He notes the law will help fund improvements to roads and bridges, upgrades to airports and maritime ports, expansions to public transit and passenger rail, and more. 

“That phrase, generational investment, I think really does hold true in this case,” Umhoefer said. 

Meanwhile, show host Sandi Siegel, president and managing director of M.E. Dey & Co., highlights some of the challenges facing supply chains. 

“For years we’ve been hearing how the infrastructure hasn’t kept up with all the extra trucks and deliveries and so forth on the road, and certainly the trucking industry seems to have had the perfect storm,” she said. “Not only with more demand, but a continuing trend of driver shortages and drivers aging out.” 

Umhoefer highlights various elements of the freight plan, including those focused on trucking, rail safety, riverways and more. 

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” Mark Rhoda-Reis of DATCP shares insights on the latest agricultural export trends and more. 

Rhoda-Reis, director of the agency’s International Agribusiness Center, says Wisconsin ag export activity in 2023 was down from the prior standout year. 

“2022 was a record year for the U.S. and for Wisconsin,” he said. “For Wisconsin it was $4.22 billion, largest on record. And whenever you go to those kinds of peaks, oftentimes it’s difficult to maintain that really high level.” 

Still, state ag exports hit $3.87 billion last year — the third largest annual total on record, he noted. And Wisconsin’s ranking for this measure improved from 13th in 2022 to 11th in 2023. 

The discussion touches on the state’s production of meats, sauces, cheese and other food products, as well as how global trends have impacted the trade relationship with Mexico, Wisconsin’s second-largest export destination in 2023. 

Rhoda-Reis notes U.S. tariffs and the COVID-19 pandemic created major economic difficulties for Mexico, with these challenges hitting the country harder than other parts of the world. 

“As we’ve seen, they’ve started climbing back out of that,” he said. “I think some of it too is from that re-shoring that’s happening, a lot of that business that’s coming back from Asia, from China, back into Mexico.” 

“Talking Trade” is available in audio form on Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. Subscribe and find more episodes here.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Director General Dennis Yen-Feng Lei of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Chicago discusses U.S.-Taiwan trade relations. 

Lei focuses on trade relationships between Taiwan and Midwest states in particular, noting the country recently signed economic agreements with leaders in Michigan and Indiana, as well as educational memorandums of understanding with Ohio, Indiana, Michigan and Minnesota. 

“We have a very promising future, our office is trying to increase more Taiwanese companies here, and also ask more American companies to invest in Taiwan,” he said. 

Bilateral trade between the United States and Taiwan reached $135.6 billion in 2022, marking an annual increase of 19%, according to figures provided by the Lei’s office in Chicago. Meanwhile, U.S. imports of integrated circuits from Taiwan increased by 50.6% in 2022, for an increase of $2.7 billion.

Taiwan is the 9th largest trading partner for the U.S., and the 8th largest source of imports to the United States, Lei noted. 

The interview was recorded before the recent elections in Taiwan, in which Democratic Progressive Party presidential candidate and current Vice President Lai Ching-te was chosen to lead the country. 

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” former U.S. Ambassador to the Czech Republic Rick Graber discusses the political landscape around the Russia-Ukraine war and how the conflict is affecting European economies. 

Graber, the former state Republican Party chair and current leader of the Bradley Foundation, says he differs from other Republicans who question why the United States is getting involved by providing aid to Ukraine. 

“I think there is a legitimate American interest, and I think the United States and the Biden Administration should have stepped up sooner, more quickly and more aggressively than they did,” he said. 

As the situation currently stands, Graber said there’s little reason for optimism about Ukraine. 

“This is going to be, has been and will be a long, long slog,” he said. 

Still, when the conflict does get resolved eventually, a “massive reconstruction effort” will be required to rebuild Ukraine, Graber said. He described it as an opportunity for Europe and the United States, though he said China is keeping an eye out for opportunities in the region as well. 

“In the meantime, the economies of central Europe … are going to have to adjust without much input from Ukraine, I’m afraid, as the country continues to get pummeled,” he said. 

Graber also weighs in on how President Biden and former President Trump have been dealing with China through tariffs and other economic tactics. 

“I am not, in general, a big fan of tariffs,” he said. “I think you’ve got to let the free market operate … I would hope that [tariffs] would be a temporary weapon. By the same token, the Chinese haven’t been playing by the rules. If they’re stealing intellectual property — which they do — that’s not acceptable either.” 

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” Djaagou-A Export founder and CEO Ognadon “Eddy” Djagou discusses his food and beverage business and U.S.-Africa trade. 

Djagou launched the company in 2017, and since then has been exporting agricultural products from the United States to African countries, with a focus on West Africa. 

“Right now, we are just working with three to five countries,” he said. “So our goal for the next five years is to extend, is to move to another country, is to, you know, have a new relationship in a new country. 

Djagou says many American companies don’t have that same level of access. But he notes the average person on the continent is relatively young and African markets are expanding rapidly. 

“There is a lot of opportunity in Africa,” he said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” outgoing MMAC President Tim Sheehy discusses his 31-year tenure with the Milwaukee chamber and the importance of business exports. 

The Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce in October announced former Republican state Sen. Dale Kooyenga of Brookfield will take over as the group’s president early next year. 

Sheehy said one of his most important accomplishments while leading the MMAC has been helping more Wisconsin governors and mayors to understand the competitive global environment for corporate investment, as well as related opportunities. 

“One of the things I’ve learned from the countless trade missions that I’ve been on to Canada, South America, Mexico, the Middle East, Southeast Asia, is that every day those regions are getting up and competing for capital investment and jobs,” Sheehy said. 

He also touts the strength of Wisconsin’s workforce and talent pool, noting it helps attract investments by large manufacturers such as Haribo, which has a large production facility in Pleasant Prairie. And he touches on international transportation infrastructure development in the state as well. 

“Something like 86% of the companies in Wisconsin that export are small or mid-sized companies, maybe exporting to one or two markets primarily, but as they start to expand, they need the service providers here that have that expertise to help them do that along with the physical infrastructure,” he said. 

Given the global uncertainty linked to conflicts in the Middle East and tensions between China and Taiwan, Sheehy said some businesses are turning inward to focus on domestic markets rather than opportunities overseas. 

“I think that’s a mistake,” he said. “And so, I think the message I would leave is, it’s a tough world out there, but buckle up and go at it and you’re going to be better for it.” 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rapport International owner Wendy Pease shares insights on the translation and interpretation industry. 

The business offers written translation, spoken interpretations and other communications services for businesses, helping its customers to reach international markets. Pease discusses how technologies such as Google Translate have influenced this work. 

“When that first came out, we said ‘Oh, is Google Translate going to put us out of business?’ And it hasn’t,” she said. “It’s actually raised the demand for good translation, because now people understand that you can communicate across languages, and that there’s a way to do it appropriately.” 

Pease also comments on the impacts of AI on this field, noting it functions better than Google Translate when applied to certain topics. But she added “you don’t know which one’s going to be better, so you can’t consistently use one” of these services over the other. 

“What I’ve heard [from] the experts, the analysts that are really deep-diving into the different technologies that are out there, is that we still need humans involved,” she said. “And it’s getting harder and harder to judge the quality, because there are some companies that will say ‘human-involved’ translation.” 

That means the service is using machine learning for translation, and then having a person review it. But if those reviewers lack subject matter expertise, mistakes could “slide by,” Pease said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Asian Insiders Partner Primadi Soerjosoemanto shares insights on business opportunities in Indonesia. 

As the world’s fourth most populous country, Indonesia has a growing economy that’s attracting investment from many global companies, Soerjosoemanto explained. 

He said policies advanced by the country’s government have drawn investment from around the world. As examples, he pointed to a recent law that allows more foreigners to work and live in Indonesia, as well as a new work permit for entrepreneurs. 

“For the past 10 years, the development is growing and you know, it’s easier to do business now,” he said. 

Soerjosoemanto said opportunities abound for U.S. companies looking to reach Indonesian markets, noting the country already imports soybeans and milk from the United States. He added more high-value goods are being manufactured in Indonesia as part of international supply chains. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Midwest Food Products Association President Jason Culotta discusses supply chain challenges, impacts on pricing and more. 

Certain metals used in can manufacturing have been in short supply in the United States, he said, which impacts the Midwest canned food industry. The region supplies most of the U.S. canned vegetable supply,  from sweet corn to green beans. 

“We beat everyone in the world on quality, but on price … normally with labor it’s not an issue actually, surprisingly, compared to the foreign competition,” he said. “But this packaging issue, with the steel for the cans, has put us at a bit of a disadvantage.” 

More foreign products in this market are being sold by U.S. retailers, Culotta said, adding that’s been disappointing to see. Many of those competing products come from China, Thailand and Brazil, he said. But he noted “these things ebb and flow, and we’re sure hopeful that we’re going to get a chance to compete fairly again.” 

He also shares his thoughts on top export opportunities for agricultural producers, highlighting “some significant growth” in places such as Mexico and the Netherlands. 

And Culotta touches on new shipping lanes opening up in the Midwest, emerging trends in the transportation business and more. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” co-hosts Sandi Siegel and Ken Wasylik interview Ian Coxhead, senior research fellow for the Institute of Developing Economies in Tokyo, Japan, about trade policy and Asian economics.

Coxhead, a former host of the show, shares his perspective on China’s economy, noting its central economic role for other nations in Asia. 

“Before the global financial crisis, China was doing great with all of these policies and efficiency gains. Since about 2010, a lot less growth. And this year, much, much less growth in the Chinese economy,” he said. 

He explains China has been challenged by slow growth, aging population, a shrinking labor force and financial instability. 

“All of these things are not the product of the Trump trade wars and the terrible Chinese response to COVID-19, but they have been exacerbated by those as well,” he said. “Chinese households, they’re getting scared. Their savings are tied up in real assets and stuff like that, so they’re really unwilling to spend at the moment.” 

Coxhead added Chinese skilled labor is still very limited, despite national workforce investments. And major efforts, such as the global Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure project, have been “very costly with very little payoff” for the country’s economy. 

He also highlights ripple effects on other middle-income countries that have relied on the Chinese market to prop up their growth. 

In the latest edition of “Talking Trade,” Croix Valley Foods owner Damon Holter discusses the company’s history, successes and plans for future expansion. 

The Hudson-based business operates out of a 20,000-square-foot facility where it makes barbecue sauces, steak sauces, marinades, dry rubs and bloody mary seasonings.

“It’s been very successful, and we continue to thrive here in the U.S. and abroad,” Holter said. 

He highlights the company’s efforts to reach international customers after realizing “the competition in the grocery industry is really cutthroat,” with relatively small margins. After being approached by a distributor in Canada, the company turned to buyers in the hardware and home improvement industry, Holter explained. 

“Basically anywhere that people are selling grills and grilling accessories, so we saw the success in the Canadian market and we decided to pivot our business here in the U.S. to do the exact same thing,” he said. “It really increased our business tremendously.” 

Holter also touches on the company’s participation in professional barbecue and steak competitions in other countries, which further catapulted efforts to reach new markets such as parts of Europe, Asia, Australia and South America. 

“We’ve utilized the lessons that we’ve learned and the relationships we’ve built with other people across the world — especially those that are passionate about cooking, and competition cooking specifically — to be able to take our business from where we were a few years ago to really the next level,” he said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Canadian Consul General Aaron Annable shares the latest figures illustrating Canada’s trade relationship with Wisconsin. 

According to Annable, 174 Canadian companies currently operate in the state, employing more than 22,000 Wisconsin workers. Annual trade between Canada and the state reached $14.7 billion in 2022, marking a 13 percent increase from the prior year, he said. 

“This means that Canadians buy 31 percent of all foreign-bound goods produced in Wisconsin, and that’s more than the next five largest foreign markets for the state combined,” Annable said. 

Total Wisconsin exports to Canada were up 15 percent last year, he added. The state’s largest export categories to its northern neighbor were paper and plastics last year, valued at $621 million and $615 million, respectively. 

Plus, nearly one-fourth of all Wisconsin imports from Canada are forestry products, valued at around $1.4 billion annually. Other top import categories include agricultural products and equipment and machinery, each of which are valued at around $800 million per year. 

“We’re very optimistic about seeing this growth continue, given the very positive and productive relationship we have with Wisconsin,” he said. 

Annable also discusses bipartisan efforts by U.S. lawmakers to boost trade and improve security agreements with Canada, as well as the latest international supply chain trends and more. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” international trade consultant Chris Wojtowicz of the Small Business Development Center highlights resources available to companies in the state. 

“Wisconsin has a wonderful, really dynamic ecosystem of help for exporters,” he said. 

He touches on support offered by local chambers of commerce, economic development officials and state agencies such as DATCP and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. 

And he discusses the role of trade compliance experts for companies looking to reach international markets, noting the current trade landscape is becoming more complex. 

“I don’t want to scare people away, but I want them to just take a look and see what could possibly affect their business … At the end of the day, if you’re exporting and you have any kind of concern about your product or who you’re doing business with, that would be the time you know you need a compliance professional,” he said.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rural Export Center Director Heather Ranck highlights exporting opportunities and resources for rural companies. 

This North Dakota-based national research center is part of the U.S. Commerce Department, and focuses on assisting small businesses in rural parts of the country with market research and other support. 

“There are three main barriers to exporting for rural exporters: knowledge, connections and confidence,” she said. “And you can use data to tackle all three of those … We tie in our global network of staff that are at the U.S. embassies and consulates around the world with the U.S. Commercial Service to help tackle those barriers.” 

The center helps its clients identify promising export markets, spending more than $1 million per year on databases. Plus, it provides lists of potential buyers to U.S. companies using its network of contacts, as well as web presence analysis and other services, Ranck said. 

She discusses one example of a Wisconsin company that benefited from the center’s services: Ventris Learning, a provider of early childhood education curricula based in Sun Prairie. 

“We identified some potential partners, and they ended up signing a partnership with a company in Australia,” she said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Port of Milwaukee Director Jackie Carter discusses plans to develop a new cruise ship dock, commodity shipping and more. 

“We are the northernmost point that can access the Mississippi River … We can get down to the Gulf of Mexico, we can get through the seaway, so from the East Coast there’s commodities that come in,” she said. “So there’s a lot of different ways that you can get products to the heartland of America, and they can come through the Port of Milwaukee.” 

As the second-largest port on the Great Lakes system by tonnage, Port of Milwaukee plays a major role in supporting business imports and exports in the region, Carter explains. 

She also highlights a new agricultural maritime export facility being developed at the port, and how farmers in the Midwest will benefit. 

“We’re really proud that that’s going to be located right here at Port Milwaukee,” she said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation Administrator Adam Tindall-Schlicht underlines the importance of Great Lakes shipping for the Midwest economy. 

He also highlights room for growth in the region, noting the amount of vessel traffic through these waterways could be doubled with “no operational impact” on U.S. and Canadian ports there. 

“Now, we want to do that in an economically and environmentally resilient way,” he said. “We view ourselves as stewards of the Great Lakes, and stewards of this freshwater asset.” 

Tindall-Schlicht also discusses the need for expansion, automation and infrastructure investment at U.S. ports on the Great Lakes, referencing the “generational opportunity” presented by the federal Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill and Inflation Reduction Act. 

“We’re in a time of cargo diversification on the Great Lakes,” he said. “We’re seeing new container services coming online that forwarders are looking at, that supply chain logisticians are looking at.” 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing and Productivity CEO Buckley Brinkman discusses how the center prepares businesses for exporting. 

He says the center’s ExporTech program helps manufacturers develop an exporting plan in 90 days that can be implemented immediately. 

“It’s really a strategic submersion, where you really get to the point where you understand, here’s my product portfolio, here are the likely targets in the world where this can be sold, and then connecting into the other resources that are available through the state or the federal government,” he said. 

According to Brinkman, companies that have gone through the program gain about $1 million in additional sales on average. 

“This isn’t as risky as most people think, because you have a lot of people helping you,” he said. “Then you have an opportunity for a huge upside when you’re talking about exporting.” 

He also shares his thoughts on some of the top trends impacting manufacturers, including supply chain uncertainty, the effort to get “critical manufacturing” out of China and the outlook for the North American market.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” MI Group Senior Advisor Terry Dittrich discusses the path ahead for rebuilding infrastructure in Ukraine. 

While the war between Russia and Ukraine rages on, Dittrich says reconstruction planning has already begun, noting “if you wait, you’ll be too late.” He shares insights from a recent conference held in Poland focused on these efforts. 

“The bottom line is, the Europeans, the Asians and to an extent, some American companies, are already in planning,” he said. “A lot of engineering, planning, design … particularly things like social housing and hospitals, schools. Very immediate need-type projects.” 

While banks in Ukraine aren’t currently operating due to instability, Dittrich says large European banks are “starting to put themselves in a position to go in” once the conflict is over. 

“I’d say we’re probably about six to 12 months away from major funding being available,” he said. “And of course that’s all contingent on things settling down over there … but pre-planning is going on full speed.” 

Dittrich adds the “real gateway” into Ukraine right now is Poland, noting most staging efforts for financing, exports and services are based in Warsaw.

 In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Pawan Bhatnagar of Kasvu Consulting and Asian Insiders touts the strength of the Indian economy. 

He says India has “proven to be remarkably resilient in the face of the headwinds” facing global markets, pointing to inflation, the war in Ukraine and other factors. 

“India is on track to become the world’s third-largest economy by ‘27, surpassing Japan and Germany,” Bhatnagar said. “And just to tell you, we may have the third-largest stock market by 2030.” 

The country is expected to more than double its current DGP of $3.5 trillion to $7.5 trillion by 2030, according to Bhatnagar. This projected growth is linked to three major trends, he said, pointing to global offshoring, digitalization and energy transitions. 

He also highlights “expanding credit availability, creation of new businesses, improving the quality of life and increased consumer spending” and the country’s growing manufacturing sector as contributing factors. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rebekah Sweeney of the Wisconsin Cheese Makers Association discusses the “recipe for success” for dairy exports in 2022. 

Sweeney, the group’s senior director of programs and policy, says last year was “an outstanding year” for U.S. dairy with more than $9.6 billion in exports. 

“That represents a 25 percent increase overall, and creates a new record both in terms of volume and value,” she said. “And I always like to say — and I really believe — that dairy processors’ success is built on a firm foundation of their commitment to quality and safety.” 

She also touts their efforts to build business relationships with export markets around the world. Sweeney highlights rising sales to Mexico, as well as other countries in Central America and South America, parts of Asia, Australia, Canada and elsewhere. 

“It’s an unmitigated success story, though perhaps one that could have been even greater absent some global disruptions,” she said, pointing to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, supply shortages and inflation limiting consumers’ purchasing power. 

Sweeney also shares her perspective on economic forecasts for 2023, arguing it’s unrealistic to expect dairy exports to rise another 25 percent this year. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Armada Corporate Intelligence Chief Economist Chris Kuehl discusses a recent shift in the global economic outlook. 

“If people were listening to the commentary even a few weeks ago, it was pretty doom and gloom,” Kuehl said. “It was looking at 2023 as a year of serious recession, maybe starting in first and second quarter and extending through the year.” 

But in the past several weeks, several new data points have helped to challenge that assumption, Kuehl explained. For one, he noted some information suggests global inflation had peaked in November or December of 2022. 

“We started to see a decline in commodity prices, we started to see a decline in shipping rates,” he said. “We saw a little bit of a decline in factory gate pricing — not like it’s gotten back to where we were prior to the pandemic, but considerably less than what we saw earlier in the year. And less than what had been anticipated for the coming year.” 

He also discusses expectations for China’s role in the global industrial community, touching on the country’s COVID-19 response, competition from India and other Asian nations, and more.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Orbis Corporation Senior Director of Global Logistics Mike Heindselman says trade compliance efforts need to be company-wide to be effective. 

“There’s no compliance without teamwork,” he said. “This can’t be one faction, or one department, or one functional area of a company that’s leading the charge on that. It has to be multiple areas that understand the goal, how it impacts them and why we are doing this.” 

To ensure that broad understanding, he underlines the importance of senior management buy-in as well as coordinated education. 

Heindselman also shares his perspective on the status of international tariffs and how they’ve influenced compliance efforts. 

“One challenge that we found was sourcing from different markets,” he said. “I think there’s a lot of people that were entrenched in certain markets that now had to learn the nuances or the ins and outs or specifics of a different market where they’re getting product overseas.” 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” recently retired Trek Bicycle Corporation executive Maureen Muldoon discusses industry trends and how the company weathered COVID-19. 

Muldoon, who was the vice president of international business development for the Waterloo-based bike maker, highlights the “bike boom” seen early in the pandemic. 

“They wanted to get bikes for their kids so they could do some things outside, people were buying bikes because they were doing stay-cations, etcetera,” she said. “It ended up being that there was this sort of boom of sorts. We reacted quickly to that, we increased our [purchase orders] with our vendors.” 

Looking forward, she expects the trend of increased sales to slow down as people return to more typical buying habits. 

“Things are going to settle in, they’re starting to settle in now,” she said. “But what we’re seeing is we’ll land the plane at a higher level than what we were pre-pandemic.” 

She also discusses the effects that supply chain disruptions had on the industry. 

“There’s so many different parts that go into a bike, if you’re missing a disk brake, you can’t build a bike,” she explained. “So in some cases, our vendors had a lot of product, a lot of inventory … but they couldn’t build a product because they were missing one item.”

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Asia Society Policy Institute Vice President Wendy Cutler says it’s unlikely that tariffs on Chinese goods will be lifted anytime soon. 

She discusses the recent news that tariff exclusions on several hundred products have been extended for another nine months after being set to expire at the end of last year. 

“But we’re talking about 352 products out of thousands and thousands,” she said. “And so, the exclusion relief also has been pretty minimal under the Biden administration. But I do think what you’re seeing is businesses are learning how to live with these tariffs, and how to do workarounds, and how to restructure their businesses.” 

Cutler notes some vocal advocates have been urging the United States to engage more with China and “get back to the negotiating table,” but says those perspectives are now in the minority. 

“The climate in Washington is you can’t be tough enough when it comes to China,” she said. “I think there’s a sense that if we sat down at the negotiating table with them on trade, what exactly would we negotiate?” 

She explained Chinese President Xi Jinping has made it clear the government will continue to play a major role in the country’s economy. That includes more restrictions on data and privacy. Cutler says U.S. trade policy will focus more on boosting competitiveness while working with allies to “develop a collective response to objectionable practices” by China. 

The discussion also highlights U.S. export trends, COVID-19, China’s contracting economy and resulting efforts to improve self-reliance, as well as the Trans-Pacific Partnership and more. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Omanhene Cocoa Bean Company President Steve Wallace discusses challenges associated with growing the Milwaukee-based chocolate business. 

The company’s products are processed and produced in Ghana, one of the world’s largest producers of cocoa. 

“Overcoming history was difficult … the politics and the economics were very much centered on getting things cheaply from this part of the world and making money with it elsewhere,” he said. 

Wallace explained his goal for decades has been to “move up the cocoa value chain.” Ghana and the Ivory Coast are the two largest cocoa growers on the planet, but most of the value linked to cocoa and other commodities from the area is added elsewhere such as Europe or the United States, he said. 

“So we were disrupting this existing value chain, and there were a lot of parties — both within and without Ghana — that benefited from the old way of doing things,” Wallace said. 

State and federal officials in October announced Niche Cocoa of Ghana was partnering with Omanhene to establish its first North American manufacturing facility in the Franklin Business Park. According to the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp., the project represents the largest food and beverage investment by an Africa-based company in U.S. history, and the largest Ghanan foreign direct investment ever made in Wisconsin. 

While Wisconsin wasn’t initially a top-of-mind destination for the project, Wallace pitched the Milwaukee area as “the perfect place” for the factory. 

“Largely because of our manufacturing expertise — in particular, the food and beverage expertise and ecosystem here — and the very highly trained and capable labor force, and the universities and the agricultural history of this state,” he said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” former diplomat Andy Rothman of the firm Matthews Asia highlights the benefits of U.S. engagement with China and says an initially bumpy transition from strict COVID-19 protocols will improve next year.

Rothman urges continued engagement, including international investment and trade, as well as academic exchanges, partnering on innovations in science and medicine and more. 

“All of that engagement I think over the last several decades has been really, really positive for most Americans,” he said, citing positive Wisconsin trade numbers with China. “And I think it’s also been really positive for most Chinese people as well. On the business side, it’s really worked.” 

While he conceded China doesn’t follow all of the rules laid out by the World Trade Organization, he said “they follow enough of the rules” to facilitate growth in the U.S.-China trade relationship. 

He noted U.S. exports of goods to China have risen by 600 percent since China joined the WTO. That’s compared to a 100 percent increase in exports to other countries. 

“Our agricultural exports — important for Wisconsin — are up 1,600 percent to China,” he said. “It’s now our largest market in the world for agricultural goods.” 

Rothman also weighs in on China relaxing its “zero-COVID” policy and possible implications for U.S. industries and the pandemic response. He notes the country has dropped restrictions that were seen as disruptive to daily life and normal economic activity. 

“In the end — certainly by the spring or early summer in the coming year — this is going to be good news for everybody, for Chinese people and for us as well,” he said. 

Chinese health officials announced yesterday the country would begin limiting its reporting of COVID-19 data as cases there are on the rise. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Europartnerships Managing Director Mark Dodsworth says businesses in the United Kingdom “have been hit very hard” by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine and Brexit. 

“These have caused a number of serious disruptions, which have led to, for example, 11 percent inflation as of today,” he said. “Rising interest rates, exchange rate volatility, supply shortages, energy price rises, shortages of labor and consumer spending under pressure.” 

But despite these challenges, he said the U.K. economy has proved to be “fairly resilient.” After a dip in 2020, its GDP rose 7 percent in 2021, Dodsworth explained. And the current quarterly GDP is only 0.4 percent below its pre-pandemic level. 

“At the moment, things are not too bad but they are likely to get a lot worse,” he said. “And there are major concerns about a prolonged recession in 2023/24.” 

He also highlights some areas of opportunity for U.S. companies, including financial technology, digitization, electric vehicles and charging infrastructure, energy efficiency, and health care and life sciences. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Michael Best Strategies Principal Mike Dankler says a federal review of Section 301 tariffs on China could be “a sign of some tariff-liftings to come.”

Federal officials recently opened a comment period on these tariffs, and Dankler says Michael Best Strategies has been encouraging clients to apply to submit comments on this process.  

“I think there’s a lot of people hoping that they may use it to rebalance things somehow, maybe use it as pretext to reopen an exclusion process,” he said. “As we’ve been telling clients, there’s an old political adage that, ‘if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu.’” 

Dankler also discusses potential actions federal lawmakers could take related to trade regulations and programs in the wake of the recent midterm elections. And he touches on the possibility for a rail worker strike and how Congress may respond. 

He also explains the chair position for the House Ways and Means Committee is up for grabs between three lawmakers from Missouri, Florida and Nebraska. 

“All of them are likely to chart kind of a free-trader type of path on trade policy,” he said.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Trade Acceptance Group Principal Bruce Glaub outlines the benefits of export credit insurance. 

If an exporter isn’t paid by a client, the insurer will pay out a percentage of that unpaid amount, Glaub explained. That’s useful at the international level because exporters have fewer options for recouping their losses from outside the country, he said. 

“Rather than what you do in the U.S., using the law maybe as your heavy hand, internationally, it’s great to use trade credit insurance,” he said. “That gives you the ‘stick,’ per say, if you need to collect from someone.” 

Glaub also noted this type of policy can help exporters offer longer payment terms to their customers amid the ongoing supply chain delays. He said that’s helpful for customers, as they’re more likely to have received the shipment by the time the payment is due. 

“The way it helps you, is you now have a longer term but it’s a protected term,” he said. “You have that guaranteed payment. So you know that, ‘Okay, I’m not going to get paid in 30 days but I’m definitely going to get paid in 90. And if I don’t, I have this insurance policy that’s going to pay me if something catastrophic happens.” 

He added those longer terms will likely be shortened in time as supply chains continue to untangle. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Mark Rhoda-Reis of DATCP discusses another potentially record-setting year for Wisconsin ag exports. 

Rhoda-Reis, the director of the agency’s International Agribusiness Center, said the state set a new record with $3.94 billion in ag exports in 2021, marking an 18 percent increase over the prior year. 

“And we’d had some challenging years, so that was good news to see,” he said. “And then year-to-date June, so our second quarter, we are already up 10 percent over that record amount. So it’s shaping up to be a strong year.” 

He gives an overview on the latest figures for Wisconsin dairy, crop and meat exports, all of which are on the rise. 

And he shares his thoughts on how the state has been faring amid all the challenges of the past several years, pointing to supply chain disruptions, shipping container shortages, higher shipping costs and COVID-19 disruption of export markets. 

“There’s a long list of things that we’re looking at, you would think that we would be down at this point,” he said. “But I think post-COVID demand has been so strong — and this is what the companies that we work with are telling us — that it’s actually been driving a lot of that need.”

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Cohen Group Associate Vice President Damian Felton explains the implications of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act on international commerce. 

The act aims to bolster U.S. prohibitions on importation of goods from the Xinjiang region of China, according to co-host Sandi Siegel of M.E. Dey & Co. Felton explains the law prohibits imports of any products coming from the region or any organization included on a UFLPA list of associated entities. 

“This really stems from the social programs that China is targeting Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in the Xinjiang autonomous region that give rise to forced labor … items originating wholely or in part from Xinjiang will be denied entry unless there’s clear and convincing evidence that they were not made with forced labor,” he said. 

He noted information on which projects being stopped isn’t made public, aside from some anecdotal reports of solar panels, men’s apparel and shirts being detained. 

“I think the impacts of UFLPA will increase over time,” Felton said.

In the latest episode of "Talking Trade," Briggs & Stratton legal executive Jennifer Jin discusses the impact of trade sanctions on manufacturing supply chains.

Jin holds the position of senior counsel, global compliance, contract and litigation for the Wauwatosa-based manufacturer. She shares her perspective with hosts M. E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel and Katie Henry, executive director of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce's World Trade Association.

She explains the importance of geopolitical changes related to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

"It's vital that companies, especially global companies, are able to respond and understand their responsibilities as it relates to some of those changing laws, not just here in the United States but all across the world," she said.

Jin says Briggs & Stratton created a rapid response team to grapple with the complexities of export control changes resulting from the conflict, including members of sales, finance, logistics and legal divisions.

"Making sure that you understand not only where your products are coming from directly, but where your products are coming from along the chain," she said. "So where are the materials coming from, are the materials going to be sourced from places, or people or entities that are sanctioned?"

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” attorney lawyer Ngosong Fonkem discusses the “seismic trade shift” in global supply chains caused by sanctions on Russia. 

Fonkem, a trade compliance specialist with Chicago law firm Page Fura, notes “this is the first time since the end of the Cold War that sanctions of this magnitude” have been levied on a major global economy. Many nations including the United States have enacted sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February. 

“Russia essentially has become the most sanctioned country in the world, essentially bypassing Iran,” he said. “Bear in mind the country is the 11th largest economy in the world in GDP terms … and you pick any commodity out there, Russia is among the top three exporter of that commodity.” 

He provides an overview on various types of sanctions against businesses, individuals and specific sectors including finance, energy and others.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” energy specialist Emily Pickrell highlights industries and companies likely to benefit from the federal Inflation Reduction Act. 

Pickrell is a journalist and global energy scholar at the University of Houston and currently writes about energy, politics and technology for Forbes. She says the wide-ranging legislation will benefit suppliers of electricity needed for electric vehicles, among others. 

“That’s solar and wind and battery production,” she said. “That’s where a large portion of the benefits are going.” 

She notes the legislation contains about $80 billion for certain EVs, with caveats aimed at steering future electric vehicle production away from China and other countries “perceived as unfriendly” to the United States. 

“Tesla is an obvious, huge beneficiary of this,” she said. “They have a vertical supply chain, they’ve already thought about these issues in advance.” 

She predicts a push toward development of related supply chains in response to the legislation, along with a “broad re-think” in the industry around long-distance supply chains. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” E.M. Wasylik Associates Managing Director Ken Wasylik discusses his approach for reaching new international markets. 

He highlights how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted those efforts, such as meeting and forming connections with clients. 

“Whether it’s a trade mission, trade venture — basically sending some sales person to that particular market, and that’s how you built it pre-pandemic,” he said. “During the pandemic, that whole travel, that section stopped. You just couldn’t do it.” 

Whether it’s developed through meeting in person or over video call, he emphasizes that “trust is the number one element” for any business relationship. 

Wasylik touches on trends in North American supply chains, how companies are addressing ongoing challenges in this arena and how alternative suppliers are helping address those issues. And he discusses the outlook for inflation and rising interest rates. 

“Everybody’s trying to manage those particular challenges,” he said. “What we’re seeing is that inflation is a universal global issue. Every market around the world is experiencing inflation, whether it’s in fuel prices, food prices, manufacturing goods, transportation.” 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Bank of America executive Drew Slocum discusses how his team helps companies navigate the intricacies of international trade. 

“The last 18 months, what we’ve seen companies work through has been unique, different and challenges that most of our companies have never faced all at one time,” said Slocum, senior vice president and marketing manager for the company. 

The show touches on rising inflation and interest rates as well as supply chain and labor issues, along with how financial institutions and their corporate clients are grappling with these trends. 

“We’ve seen borrowing ramp up quite a bit really across the board, as companies are faced with higher costs, but also as they think about trying to get ahead of inventory issues,” he said. “More advanced purchasing on inventory … trying to make sure they have the components on hand so they can meet the demand that they’re seeing.”

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” U.S. Department of Commerce Deputy Undersecretary for International Trade Diane Farrell discusses the administration’s pandemic recovery efforts. 

“For those of us in the international sphere, it’s not just about building back better in the United States,” she said. “It’s about how do we strategize our economic recovery, how do we take advantage of opportunities overseas, and how are we also helping our foreign partners to recover from the global impacts of COVID.” 

Farrell also highlights agency efforts to ensure trade agreements establish a “level playing field” for U.S. companies. 

“We know that when the level playing field exists, our companies are extremely successful,” she said. 

She also said she’s “thrilled over the moon” about the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity recently announced by President Biden. She points to the “diverse markets” included in the framework such as Singapore, Japan, Australia, India, Malaysia and others. 

“Importantly, this is also an effort to start to truly address in a material way the impacts of climate change,” she said. “Another, of course, extremely important Biden-Harris administration priority, but one that folks in that region particularly have been impacted by.”

The latest episode of “Talking Trade” features a conversation with David Usher, acting consul general for Canada’s Chicago Consulate. 

He talks about the consulate’s role in promoting cross-border trade and economic development in Canada as well as Wisconsin, Illinois and Missouri, pointing to the “very important and robust” trade connection between Canada and Wisconsin. 

He explains Wisconsin exports about $7.5 billion in goods to Canada each year, while it imports about $5.5 billion annually. And he highlights the 189 Canadian-owned businesses in the state that employ over 22,000 Wisconsin workers. 

The discussion ranges from opportunities for Wisconsin startups in Canada and the growing role of Toronto as a “tech hub” to supply chain issues and collaborations in water technology. 

Usher touts the role of the water sector in Milwaukee, touching on the connection between the consulate and the Water Council’s Brew 2.0 incubator program. Three Canadian companies have been chosen to join the program’s latest cohort, he said. 

“This is another area where Canada and Wisconsin have shared skills, shared interests, and the cooperation is great, and we’re trying to make it even stronger,” he said. 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” international trade consultant Chris Wojtowicz discusses supply chain disruptions and potential solutions. 

Wojtowicz is part of the Small Business Development Center at the UW Institute for Business and Entrepreneurship and is the chair of the Wisconsin District Export Council. He highlights the support available for companies looking to connect with domestic and international markets. 

He also touches on some of the top challenges facing small businesses amid the pandemic recovery. 

“A lot of them are a little skittish, some of them are just straight-up gung-ho, let’s get after this. Which is great, I love that particular energy,” he said.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Michael Best Strategies Principal Mike Dankler provides an update on the latest sanctions against Russia and the effect on trade and commodity prices. 

“One area where the U.S. and EU and others haven’t really gone the full way is on energy,” he explained. “EU is just so reliant on Russian oil and gas that they can’t go too far yet without hurting themselves.” 

Dankler said it’s uncertain how long it will take for certain sanctions on Russia to have a real impact on the war in Ukraine. He noted long-term export controls are expected to impact Russian factories, while banking sanctions recently announced by the United States “make a default almost imminent.” 

“How does that impact Russia’s ability to prosecute its war? That’s kind of the main question,” he said. “And the secondary question of, what does Vladimir Putin consider a win?” 

He also points to “wide-ranging” impacts on global supply chains, though he noted Russia isn’t as interconnected with western supply chains as a country like China, for example. But because both Ukraine and Russia are major producers of wheat, he warned of potential famines or food supply shortages. 

“We haven’t seen that yet but it’s definitely a concern,” he said.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Visthar founder Pradeep Nedungadi highlights trade opportunities for Wisconsin companies in India. 

His company provides consultant services for businesses looking to operate in India, which is the second most populous country in the world. 

“It’s a shame that the U.S. is just discovering India as a manufacturing option, and even as a trading partner in non-manufacturing businesses, only in the last 30 years,” he said.

Unlike China, he explains India has been historically focused on domestically consumed goods rather than export products. 

“Now that the global automotive industry has entered India in the last 30 years, with largely Japanese companies but some U.S. companies and European companies, everything that follows automotive is also developed to world-class standards,” he said. “So now it is available to the Western world for products, parts and components. So the landscape is looking good.” 

Many of Visthar’s clients are located in the Midwest, including Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa. The company’s business has doubled in the past two years, and Nedungadi says he expects another doubling between 2021 and 2022. 

“It’s from a smaller base, but as the base grows higher, we’re still maintaining that growth,” he said. “We’re expecting it to triple from 2022 to 2025.” 

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” a UW-Madison economist and expert on Russia provides insight into the evolving conflict with Ukraine. 

Paul Castaneda Dower is an assistant professor of agricultural and applied economics at the university and is involved with UW-Madison’s Wisconsin Russia Project. He offers his perspective on the rationale behind Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as well as how it could impact global trade. 

“Precisely because Ukraine is so close to Russia … economically, culturally, historically, politically, all these things, because they’re so close, if Ukraine is able to successfully integrate with the west and democratize in a successful way, this means that it can be done in Russia too,” he said. “That’s very problematic for Putin’s worldview.” 

Aside from the predicted rise in fuel costs, Dower notes Russia and Ukraine combined produce a fourth of the world’s wheat and a fifth of the world’s corn. And Ukraine is the world’s largest exporter of sunflower seed oil. 

“So obviously this is going to have huge effects across the globe,” he said. “With the pandemic’s disruption of the global supply chains, this is going to be an additional, kind of perfect storm if you will, to impact global prices.” 

The latest episode of “Talking Trade” features a conversation with Samantha Vortherms, an assistant professor of political science at University of California, Irvine. 

Vortherms, a 2017 graduate of UW-Madison, discusses trade relations between the United States and China with hosts M.E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel and UW-Madison Professor Ian Coxhead. She highlights recent research on how trade wars impact multinational firms operating in China. 

“Tariffs do increase exits, but really it’s this broad political souring that’s pushing firms out,” she said. “And not just U.S. firms, but firms much more broadly.” 

She found that large firms, and those that entered China about 20 years ago, were the least likely to leave the country amid the “souring” environment. Companies that are more entrenched in China with a stronger base of operations were “much less likely” to leave than other businesses. 

“We really think that firm size, so how much capital they have, and their age — how long they’ve been there — are proxies for how well integrated they are, maybe the relationships that they develop locally that can kind of buffer,” she said. “Instead of shutting down to reduce costs, they then pass on the costs to consumers or somewhere else down the supply chain.” 

The featured guest on the latest episode of “Talking Trade” is Mark Rhoda-Reis, director of the International Agribusiness Center at the Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection. 

Rhoda-Reis gives an update on “quite a strong year” for ag products in the state. Based on year-to-date data from November, he said exports over most of 2021 were up 19 percent over the previous year. 

For the overall year, he said “we expect to be up close to that percentage amount; that’ll put us at least our 10-year record for agricultural exports.” He noted the state’s top five export markets saw growth through November, with three of those experiencing growth in the double digits. 

“We’re a little bit surprised, if you think about the high cost of containers, the lack of availability of containers, workforce shortages and challenges and being able to produce, but there was so much pent-up demand that we sort of were able to overcome a lot of those headwinds,” he said. 

The latest episode of “Talking Trade” features Rocío Rivera Barradas, consul of economic affairs at the General Consulate of Mexico in Chicago. 

Barradas highlights difficulties with trading with China and other Asian nations due in part to COVID-19 factors. She notes the auto industry has been struggling amid the pandemic, contrasting that with the success of the medical industry and strong Mexican beer sales in Illinois. 

Also due to the pandemic and challenges related to trading with China, Barradas says U.S. companies “are looking again to Mexico” to relocate some of their operations. 

“Here at the consulate, we receive many questions and requests about finding suppliers in Mexico. Also finding companies that can’t manufacture products that they used to buy from China — now they want to buy it from Mexico,” she said.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” WEDC Vice President of Global Business Development Katy Sinnott highlights rising exports to some of the state’s top trade partners.

Wisconsin’s exports over the past 10 months have increased 21 percent compared to the same period of 2020, with growth seen in exports to Canada, Mexico and China, she said.

She noted pharmaceuticals and prepared vegetables shipped to Mexico have “increased by huge numbers,” while exports of medical and scientific equipment to China have also risen.

“And when we look at our top three export products, which are industrial machinery, medical and scientific instruments, and electrical machinery, all of these categories have increased by between 6 and 10 percent, so good news,” she said.

Sinnott also discusses programs run by the Wisconsin Economic Development Corp. that aim to help businesses boost exports, as well as the agency’s network of trade representatives.

“We’ve had people who have had laws change while their product is on the water, going to a country, and we’ve actually been able to use our trade representative network to find support for that company so when it landed in that country, they actually could offload their equipment and send it to their buyer,” she said.

The latest “Talking Trade” video podcast features a conversation with Will Hsu, president of Hsu’s Ginseng Enterprises. 

President Trump’s trade war with China and COVID-19 were doubly harsh on Wisconsin’s ginseng trade, as Talking Trade hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel learn from Hsu.

The latest “Talking Trade” video podcast features Mike Dankler, trade advisor for Michael Best Strategies in Washington, D. C.

With a new trade agreement reached between the United States and the European Union, Talking Trade hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel discuss future trade and tariff issues with Dankler. 

Times are tough for international trade with snarled U.S. ports and, as Talking Trade hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel learn from Kohler Co. trade coordinator Julie Pojar, a patchwork of changing tariffs poses continued trade barriers.

It’s cranberry harvest time, and Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association Executive Director Tom Lochner chats with “Talking Trade” co-hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel about this year’s crop, supply chain issues and where cranberry exports can grow.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel interview Ngosong Fonkem, an Appleton native with the law firm Page Fura.

Fonkem discusses the Biden administration’s human rights-trade policies and his book, “Trade Crash.” Fonkem also chairs the International Practice Section of the Wisconsin State Bar.

Talking Trade hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel visit with Jay Nash of the Madison International Trade Association and Nash Global Trade Services for a discussion of trade trends and their impact on store shelves in coming months.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel speak with Adam Sitkoff, executive director of the American Chamber of Commerce in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Sitkoff, a UW-Madison grad, tells Coxhead and Siegel of about the impact of Vice President Kamala Harris’ recent visit and warns that COVID-related issues will translate into delivery problems for holiday gifts.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel connect with Menzie Chinn, professor of public affairs and economics with UW-Madison’s Robert M. La Follette School of Public Affairs.

Their discussion highlights the impact of shifting U.S.-China relations on international trade, including investment and competition in technology production.

The Talking Trade Team of Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel welcome a long-time Milwaukee business insider to add some insights into U.S. -China trade.

Business dealings with China changed during the COVID pandemic, Ulice Payne president of Addison-Clifton, a global trading firm, tells Talking Trade’s Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel, and the new normal offers new business opportunity.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Shawn Jarosz, founder of consulting firm Trade Moves, talks about international trade issues affecting ag, organic labeling and other items with hosts Ian Coxhead and Sandi Siegel.

In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” hosts UW-Madison Professor Ian Coxhead and M.E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Spiegel discuss this season’s U.S. crop production and exports. 

The show also features Mark Rhoda-Reis, bureau director for export and business development at the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection.

Adam Tindall-Schlicht, director of Port Milwaukee, talks with Sandi Siegel and Ian Coxhead of “Talking Trade” about new port developments.

He also talks about the port’s role in Midwest trade and how possible rail mergers may impact Wisconsin. 

Ian Coxhead, UW-Madison professor, and Sandi Siegel, president of M. E. Dey & Co. in Milwaukee, interview Joe Glauber, senior research fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute, about trends in U.S.-China agricultural trade affecting the Midwest. 

Talking Trade’s UW-Madison Prof. Ian Coxhead and M.E. Dey & Co., Pres. Sandi Siegel discuss changes afoot in east-west trade as Pres.-elect Joe Biden prepares to take office.

With the Biden administration come new views on international trade as “Talking Trade” hosts Prof. Ian Coxhead and M.E. Day & Co., President Sandi Siegel consider how quickly any new approaches might arise.

After the world’s largest international trade pact was signed in November, “Talking Trade” hosts Prof. Ian Coxhead and M. E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Seigel explore the treaty and why the U.S. did not join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, dominated by the People’s Republic of China.

With President-elect Joe Biden developing his transition team, Talking Trade’s UW-Madison Prof. Ian Coxhead, and M. E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel consider how Biden’s international trade policy might not follow his predecessor’s approach.

China may view Joe Biden’s presidency as an improvement over the Trump Administration according to Talking Trade’s Kelvin Ma in his discussion of the recent election with WisPolitics.com’s Jeff Mayers.

“Talking Trade” hosts UW-Madison Prof. Ian Coxhead and M. E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel use the 2020 election to evaluate President Trump’s trade policy. They also discuss potential changes with a Joe Biden victory.

In this episode of “Talking Trade,” hosts Prof. Ian Coxhead and M.E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel discuss how human rights charges in East Asia impact trade.

In this episode of “Talking Trade,” Prof. Ian Coxhead and M.E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel discuss the lawsuit 3,500 U.S. companies filed to block further tariffs following a federal appeals court decision that Trump administration trade duties on Chinese goods were illegal.

With Election Day 2020 a few weeks away, Talking Trade’s Prof. Ian Coxhead, and M.E. Dey & Co. president Sandy Siegel compare President Trump’s U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement with the NAFTA pact it replaced.

On this week’s episode of Talking Trade, UW-Madison Prof. Ian Coxhead and Sandy Siegel, president of M. E. Dey & Co., compare notes on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected Wisconsin businesses.

China-U.S. trade is in transition according to UW-Madison Asian trade Prof. Ian Coxhead and M.E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel as President Trump’s trade war forces China leader Xi Xinping to focus on growing domestic demand.

After a recent WTO panel found U.S. tariffs on $200 billion of Chinese goods illegal, M. E. Dey & Co. President Sandi Siegel and UW-Madison Prof. Ian Coxhead explain the issue in this inaugural episode of “Talking Trade.”

WisPolitics.com’s Jeff Mayers and Shanghai trade specialist Atty. Kelvin Ma look at how the People’s Republic of China views the ban on TikTok and the U.S. trade war in this special edition of Talking Trade. Talking Trade is supported by the UW-Madison Center for East Asian Studies.

Jeff Mayers of WisPolitics.com talks with Shanghai attorney and trade consultant Kelvin Ma about whether the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China are in a trade war or a tech war in this bonus episode of “Talking Trade.”