September/October 2008 | Trade and Industry Development

September/October 2008

Trade & Industry Development Magazine

Welcome to our Manufacturing issue, where we dispel the myth about manufacturing in the U.S. – its heyday is not in the past! In fact, U.S. manufacturing is the eighth largest economy in the world. And yes, while the manufacturing industry has many strengths, it, too, has challenges. As with any challenge, the first step in handling the challenge is to identify it. Once identified, a solution can then be determined and acted upon. You’ll find these ideas, and more, in the pages that follow.

In this issue

Ports Grapple with Throughput Challenges

BY: Kevin M. Mayer

Once a great ship is in motion, it tends to stay in motion. It will neither slow nor change direction very quickly. And if that is true of a single ship, could it also be true of something much larger? Could cargo flows into the United States be so massive, and possess so much inertia, that they would resist any sudden change?  The question is timely. At present, there is no shortage of dispiriting economic news. Financial turmoil. Rising energy prices. Declining consumer confidence. A weakening dollar. Given such conditions, will the flow of imported goods continue to rise or even be sustained?   more....