The Associated Press
CHARLESTON — CHARLESTON — West Virginia exported $4.8 billion worth of products and commodities last year and led the nation in coal exports, according to the state Development Office.
Although the state’s 2009 exports were down 14.5 percent from the $5.6 billion record set in 2008, West Virginia fared better than the nation as a whole. United States exports overall declined 17.9 percent last year, the development office said. The results are not surprising in light of the economic recession.
West Virginia exported coal valued at $2.1 billion last year — a figure that led the nation. Alabama came in second with coal exports valued at $1 billion. Virginia was third at $928 million; Pennsylvania was fourth at $639 million; and Ohio was fifth at $334 million.
West Virginia’s coal exports last year were down 4.5 percent from the all-time record $2.2 billion worth shipped in 2008, when companies around the world paid record prices for the state’s metallurgical coal, which is used in steelmaking. The state’s coal exports only totaled $910 million in 2007.
Coal was by far the state’s leading export again last year. Plastics came in a distant second at $687 million — down 30 percent from the $981 million worth shipped in 2008. Machinery came in third at $539 million, down 19 percent from the $664 million worth shipped in 2008.
Chemicals valued at $317 million were exported from West Virginia last year, down from $355 million in 2008. The state’s other top exports last year: Medical components, $151 million; automotive components, $136 million; aerospace components, $99 million; synthetic rubber, $87 million; aluminum, $77 million; and wood products, $69 million.
West Virginia exported to 136 countries last year, the development office said.
Canada is consistently the state’s top trading partner. Other top recipients of West Virginia products and commodities last year: Brazil, Netherlands, Belgium, China, France, United Kingdom, Japan, India and Italy.
It is difficult to say how many West Virginia jobs rely on exports. The U.S. Department of Commerce has estimated that every $1 billion in exports creates 15,000 jobs, but the number may vary widely by industry.
The state has been keen on boosting exports for many years. The state maintains trade offices in Japan and Germany. Gov. Joe Manchin visited Japan in 2005, Germany and Italy in 2006, and Canada and China in 2007.
Debra Martin, the development office’s manager of international trade, said in a prepared statement, “President Obama unveiled a plan in his 2010 State of the Union address that establishes the goal of doubling U.S. exports over the next five years. This goes to show that export promotion is an issue on the minds of business and government officials from the individual to the national level.
“While the president’s initiative addresses many issues that will be managed at the national level, such as trade policy, there are two very important tasks that will involve the state of West Virginia and any organization that attempts to help businesses increase their internal sales: Educating U.S. companies about opportunities overseas and directly connecting them with new customers.
“These tasks are not new to the West Virginia Development Office,” Martin said. “These have always been part of our mission for the Export Promotion Program.” She said the office will accomplish these tasks this year by helping to organize trade events, holding export seminars, and providing customized onsite export training.
As for trade events, “Our next scheduled event is TradeWinds, a business matchmaking forum organized by the U.S. Commercial Service and open to all companies in the United States,” she said. West Virginia has six companies participating in the April 25-30 event.
Later in the year there will be similar events in Italy, Australia, South Africa and India. Each will provide opportunities for companies to travel to the market and, with assistance from the development office, meet one-on-one with potential sales agents, distributors and end users, Martin said.
