VOA标准英语2011--More US Companies Look Global as Domesti

More US Companies Look Global as Domestic Demand Drops

Since the economic recession in 2008, some U.S. companies that historically depend on the domestic market started looking elsewhere for business. In Southern California, organizations that help businesses have been encouraging them to go global to boost their bottom line. There are reasons why most American businesses do not export their products.
California-based Tystar sells a special type of furnace. It gets so hot that it can cook the silicone components¹ that go in computers and cell phones. The company assembles these furnaces in Los Angeles and sells them within the United States and overseas.
Jim Smith manages the business development side of Tystar. He says in the last four to five years, the company started focusing more on establishing itself globally, in markets as far away as China, Singapore and South Korea. During that time, exports grew from 20 percent to half of Tystar's business.
Smith says without overseas clients, the economic recession would have hurt the company. But he says developing an international client base was not easy.
"You have a language barrier that's your first challenge. Every place in the world does business differently than we do business in the United States," Smith noted².
Language and cultural barriers are not the only hurdles³ that discourage businesses from going global. Vance Baugham, president of the World Trade Center Association of Los Angeles and Long Beach, says companies need extra capital to export. He says many U.S. businesses are small and have limited resources.
"When a company is small, all of its resources are usually used to the max," Baugham explained. "In order to find the resources for taking on a global market that is the number one difficulty for them."
Baugham says this is one of the main reasons why less than 15 percent of U.S. businesses enter the global market. Yet despite such difficulties, the drop in domestic demand caused by a tough economy has motivated some U.S. companies to look abroad.
"Companies have to look to diversify⁴ their markets away from the domestic economy. And 95 percent of the world's consumers are actually outside the United States," said Jim MacLellan, the director of trade development at the Port of Los Angeles.
For now, U.S.-based companies seeking to sell products overseas have an advantage. MacLellan says the weakened dollar makes U.S. exports less expensive relative to goods sold in other currencies. A decade ago, about 20 percent of the Port of L.A.'s cargo⁵ were exports. Now exports are up to 34 percent.
In Southern California, the Port of Long Beach experienced an almost 50 percent increase in exports in the last 10 years. Businesses located in the Los Angeles area on the west coast have the advantage of being close to these ports, and an international airport, making it cheaper to send products overseas.
Traditionally, small companies expanded their businesses slowly, first selling locally, then regionally before considering competing in the global marketplace. Vance Baugham says he is now seeing a new trend.
"Some of the smaller companies are going from local sales to the global market right away," Baugham added.
Baugham says he is also seeing a changing trend in imports. With the price of fuel going up and the cost of overseas labor⁶ increasing, it is more expensive to produce items and ship them to the United States. Baugham says countries such as China are looking at manufacturing products within the U.S. to keep costs down.

1 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

2 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

3 hurdles   

n.障碍( hurdle的名词复数 )；跳栏；（供人或马跳跃的）栏架；跨栏赛

参考例句：

• In starting a new company, many hurdles must be crossed. 刚开办一个公司时，必须克服许多障碍。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• There are several hurdles to be got over in this project. 在这项工程中有一些困难要克服。 来自辞典例句

4 diversify   

v.（使）不同，（使）变得多样化

参考例句：

• Our company is trying to diversify.我们公司正力图往多样化方面发展。
• Hills and woods diversify the landscape.山陵和树木点缀景色。

5 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

6 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。