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What is it? This riddle comes from Fortune magazine in its 1996 listing of the 17 best U.S. cities for business. The answer is Seattle, of course! You probably know that the Boomerang Box was born in Seattle. You probably know APL Eagle's parent, APL Limited, ships in and out of the Port of Seattle. You may even know that Bill Nye the Science Guy and some of the Mariners, Sonics and Seahawks are Seattle natives, too. And you can bet some of them drink Starbucks coffee! Seattle is in King County, which is in Washington State. It is the largest city in the Pacific Northwest, on the West Coast of the United States. Ships and planes stream in and out of the Seattle region on a daily basis. They carry cargo to over 200 countries all around the world. Seattle has a competitive advantage over other West Coast ports when it comes to exporting goods to Asia because it is one day closer to Asia than other marine ports. Seattle also has an advantage when it comes to shipping air cargo to Great Britain because planes can fly the polar route. Use a globe and a piece of string to measure distance from Seattle to Kobe, Japan, and then measure the distance from Kobe to Los Angeles. Do the same from Seattle to London and London to New York. Washington State is the fourth leading state for total exports to foreign countries. It exports more per capita than any other state in the United States. (Per capita means per unit of population.) Here are the nation's top ten states in total exports: |
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| California $109.5 billion Illinois $29.1 billion Texas 84.3 billion Florida 27.6 billion New York 41.7 billion | Ohio 27.2 billion Washington 36.0 billion Louisiana 20.7 billion Michigan 34.8 billion North Carolina 18.3 billion |
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| Source: Massachusetts Institute for Social & Economic Research (MISER), 1997 | | ||
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That’s a lot of money! Where does it come from? See if you can find export information about Washington and other states using an encyclopedia, an atlas, an almanac or the Internet. You will discover that Japan is Washington State's largest customer. In 1997, Japan bought $6.7 billion worth of products from manufacturers in Washington. Can you find out what kinds of products Japan buys from Washington State? Here are the state's top export customers: |
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| Japan $6.7 billion Taiwan $1.7 billion United Kingdom 4.7 billion Germany 1.5 billion Canada 3.0 billion | Malaysia 1.4 billion South Korea 2.5 billion Singapore 1.4 billion China 1.9 billion Saudi Arabia 1.2 billion |
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| Source: Massachusetts Institute for Social & Economic Research (MISER), 1997 | | ||
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Most people are surprised to find out that Washington exports so much to Great Britain. Canada, our neighbor to the north, is easier to guess at third place. Find each country on a map of the world. What do you suppose Washington State has that these countries need? A large portion of Washington’s exports are aircraft sales from The Boeing Company. Over 160 of the 321 planes that Boeing delivered in 1997 were exported. Boeing manufacturers more than just planes. See if you can name three other products they’re known for by researching their extensive Web site. Also, try to find out which states besides Washington have Boeing facilities. Here’s another surprise to a lot of people: Microsoft software is not included in the export figures you just read! Computer software is not classified as merchandise. Instead, it is part of the service industry. Service exports from Washington State — software, architectural and engineering services and consulting — total nearly $4 billion more each year! What else does Washington export? Some people think Washington’s apples are the best in the world. The state is known for a number of other agricultural crops, including wheat and asparagus. Even if you don’t like asparagus, you’ll like the Seattle P-I News for Kids Web site, “Grown in Washington.” It’s a special newspaper section about Washington State’s farming industry. Check out that story about raising goopagourds! Goopa-what?!! Teachers, please note the "Grown in Washington" curriculum guide. Do you know why Washington is nicknamed The Evergreen State? It’s because of its majestic forests. Portions of the forest are harvested each year and sold in a variety of forms — raw logs and lumber, paper and pulp products, and different kinds of finished products like manufactured homes. Last fall, students visited the Potlatch Corporation when the Boomerang Box was loaded with milk carton stock for shipment overseas. Weyerhaeuser and other Washington timber companies export billions of dollars of wood and paper products each year. Washington also exports meat and poultry products, fish, aluminum, machinery and sporting goods. Can you identify any companies that produce these products? Are any of them located in your area? Homework assignment: Identify a product that is manufactured in your area. Find out if it is exported and determine what countries it goes to. The easiest way to do this may be to pick up the telephone! With a friend, make a list of questions you need to ask in advance so you don’t waste valuable time — your own! What is your product? What countries do you ship to? How is your product shipped (marine, air, rail or truck cargo)? Can you think of other questions? How about these: How many employees do you have? Where do your workers live? When you call, speak clearly and use your best phone skills. Ask for the public relations or sales and marketing office. If they don’t have one, simply introduce yourself and explain that you are a student doing research on local exports. Even if you need to wait for a call back, you’ll probably get more information than you thought imaginable! Be prepared to ask follow-up questions and take notes! Learn as much as you can about exports from your area. Manufacturers are proud of their products and are usually happy to help, especially a trade-smart kid like you! |
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