By Bill Wyatt and Judi Johansen
As an income tax-dependent state, Oregon must work to develop good jobs, and one way to do that is to renew our commitment to growing this region's historic role as a facilitator of international trade.
Two recent studies -- Export Nation, by the Brookings Institution, and The International Trade Study, conducted by a consortium of Portland and Oregon business groups, as well as the Port of Portland -- confirm that imports and exports are one of the most promising competitive strengths we have to grow jobs and our economy.
Export Nation showed that Portland is one of the top 20 U.S. metropolitan areas in exporting strength and is one of only four metropolitan areas in the country that doubled the real value of its exports between 2003 and 2008. The study also showed that exports can generate a significant number of good-paying jobs and that those jobs pay higher wages than domestic-oriented industries in large metropolitan areas.
The International Trade Study concludes that, because Oregon is a trade-dependent state and because Portland is a metropolitan region with significant traded-sector strengths, international trade is a true bright spot in these recession-wracked times and can be a critical factor in the region's economic recovery.
