WASHINGTON, May 13 (Xinhua) -- U.S. Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker announced a new initiative to boost exports on Tuesday, as the government seeks to spur growth and ensure job security through trade.
The new mission, named NEI/NEXT, is a data-based, customer service-driven initiative to ensure that more American businesses can fully capitalize on markets of which 95 percent are outside the United States, the Department of Commerce said.
Building on the National Export Initiative (NEI) launched in 2010, the new scheme is aimed to help more U.S. businesses get tailored industry-specific information and assistance, make the international shipment easier and less expensive, streamline export-related services, and expand access to finance for U.S. businesses, the department said.
Under the NEI, the United States has registered four straight record-breaking years of exports -- hitting an all-time high of 2. 3 trillion U.S. dollars last year, up 700 billion dollars from 2009, the department said.
Since 2009, nearly one-third of the country's economic growth has been driven by exports, it said, adding that nearly 30,000 businesses have started exporting for the first time, and the number of jobs supported by exports has grown by 1.6 million to more than 11.3 million, the highest in 20 years.
Yet still, too many American firms remain focused on domestic markets, the department said, citing that less than 5 percent of U. S. companies export, and more than half of those exporters sell to only one market.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑） |