U.S., Canadian Cities Strike Agreement to Improve Small Business Trade Ties
A new trade agreement between the U.S. and Canadian cities will increase access between markets, offering each country more opportunities for importing and exporting, said Bradley University, which is involved in the agreement. The Illinois SBDC International Trade Center (ITC) located at Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois signed an agreement with the World Trade Centre Winnipeg (WTC) as part of the U.S. Department of State's effort to "to develop closer ties between small businesses in the Americas," Bradley said in a press release (here).
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Winnipeg and Peoria's two-way trade partnership will benefit each city's import and export markets, as well as promote cooperation at the city and regional levels. "In 2012 and 2014 Canada was Greater Peoria's top export market. The most recent trade statistics reported that more than $300 million in Canadian imports passed through the Port of Peoria in October 2014," the Bradley University press release said. This partnership offers "center-to-center access to expertise on local markets, industry sectors and companies and will provide information on larger issues, such as national trade opportunities and best practices, particularly in regard to NAFTA," said ITC Director Jim Foley.