An Introduction to Exporting

Interested in Exporting? Then check out the "Introduction to Exporting" seminar scheduled for March 9 in Orlando, Fl. Topics will include:

1. Organizing Export Procedures
2. Protecting Your Interests Abroad
3. Export Payment Methods & Financing
4. Export Logistics
5. Building an Overseas Infrastructure

I'll be speaking about ways companies can use social media to communicate with customers around the world. The event costs $45 to attend and will run from 9am to 3:30pm. To register, click here.

Rafael Gerena is the author of the "Go Global" blog and a former Economics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal. He can be reached at info@instruxo.com, www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelgerena or Twitter @instruxo

China's Achilles Heel

By Rafael Gerena, Instruxo

I was on a conference call today with Ian Bremmer, president of Eurasia Group, a global political risk research and consulting firm. He spent most of his 1-hour talk focused on China. His first main point: China will drive global economic growth for the next 5 to 10 years, but lose steam after that. He highlighted 3 key weaknesses: 1) China's working age population is set to decline in 15 years or so. This means the country's supply of low-cost manufacturing labor will be constrained. 2) China doesn't foster innovation or entrepreneurship- which hems its ability to create a world-class company ala Google or Apple. 3) China has a poor corporate governance system.

As for Latin America, Ian says Brazil should continue ascending as an economic power. And Mexico's economy should rebound as the U.S. economy does. 

You can find Ian's books on Amazon by clicking here.
His Foreign Affairs Article (subscription required) is here.

Rafael Gerena is the author of the "Go Global" blog and a former Economics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal. He can be reached at info@instruxo.com, www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelgerena or Twitter @instruxo

Florida Airports Prepare for Cuba

Florida airports are preparing for a New Era of U.S.-Cuba relations: Airport officials in Fort Lauderdale, Tampa, Key West and possibly Orlando plan to seek federal permission to establish direct flights to Cuba under new travel rules implemented last month by the Obama administration. The goal is to prepare for a possible rush of traffic if the two nations remove all travel barriers for American tourists, reports the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. You can read the article here. 

The article avoids the elephant in the room: Aside from worthy political considerations, what are the business implications of booming passenger-air travel between the U.S. and Cuba? Obviously, the opening of Cuba's market would represent a major opportunity for U.S. purveyors of, say, financial services, logistics, infrastructure, higher education and consumer goods.

Cool Tools:

Free Webinars on the Basics of Exporting

Rafael Gerena is the author of the "Go Global" blog and a former Economics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal. He can be reached at 407-536-9146, info@instruxo.com, www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelgerena or www.twitter.com/Instruxo

Business Expansion in Poland & Vietnam

By Rafael Gerena, of Instruxo

Need a job? Well, U.S. companies are hiring thousands of people- overseas. Manpower, a U.S. staffing firm, says virtually all of the more than 100 offices it plans to open this year will be in emerging markets such as Poland, India, China and Vietnam. (It's a great time to be a Vietnamese temp worker :) Yum!, a U.S. fast-food company, says roughly 80% of the 900 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell stores it plans to open this year will be in emerging markets, the Wall Street Journal reports. The reason? Emerging markets over the next two years are expected to grow almost three times faster than "advanced" markets, such as the U.S. and Europe. (See graph above.) Consider this: GM sold more cars in China last year than in the U.S.

WSJ subscribers can read the article here.

Bottom Line:
Smart U.S. companies are expanding in fast-growing emerging markets.


Rafael Gerena is the author of the "Go Global" blog and a former Economics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal. He can be reached at 407-536-9146, info@instruxo.com, www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelgerena or www.twitter.com/Instruxo

New College Syllabus: Portuguese and Chinese

By Rafael Gerena, of Instruxo

As China and Brazil experience strong economic growth...

Chinese and Portuguese now rank among the Top 5 foreign languages with the fastest-growing enrollment rates at U.S. colleges.  College enrollment in Arabic classes boomed 46% in the three-year-period ending in 2009. The jump resulted from the U.S. government's recruiting of Arabic interpreters to help with communication in the Middle East.

But Spanish (864,986 enrollees) remains the the most popular foreign language studied on U.S. college campuses in terms of total enrollment.

Read more here or here.

The Bottom Line: U.S. college students are shifting the languages they study to match the countries experiencing strong economic growth.

Sources: 

International Monetary Fund, Modern Language Association

Rafael Gerena is the author of the "Go Global" blog and a former Economics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal. He can be reached at 407-536-9146, rg@instruxo.com, www.linkedin.com/in/rafaelgerena or www.twitter.com/Instruxo

Instruxo LLC Selected Among Florida’s Most Innovative Companies

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Instruxo LLC Selected Among Florida’s Most Innovative Companies to Demo at TechVenture 2010

Demonstrators represent growing number of next-generation technologies being developed across Florida at TechVenture 2010

(Orlando, Fl., November 28, 2010) – Florida Technology Journal, a leading source for business technology news, is proud to announce its list of companies demonstrating at this year’s TechVenture 2010.  The companies selected for this year’s event represent the growing number of next-generation technologies being developed across Florida in multiple industry sectors. Instruxo LLC is recognized for its pioneering technology and is now given the opportunity to showcase its product to a room full of industry influencers and investors at this year’s event, taking place December 2-3 at the Sonesta Orlando Downtown Hotel.

TechVenture’s line up of company demonstrations represents a wide array of growing technology industries in the Southeast region such as alternative energy, cleantech, cloud solutions, digital media, information technology, medical device, software, web applications and wireless. Those companies selected all met the criteria of being headquartered in Florida, privately owned with 1-50 employees with annual revenues from pre-revenue up to $50 million. In addition, proprietary technology and the product or solution has been commercialized, in trials or beta testing stages.

“We had a large pool of truly innovative companies submit for this year’s competition, making the selection process extremely difficult,” said David Glass, publisher of Florida Technology Journal. “Those selected will have the opportunity to not only showcase their technology at TechVenture but also will connect with some of Florida’s most influential decision-makers. We congratulate them as their technology demonstrates the most competitive advantages in the marketplace.”

More than just your average technology conference, TechVenture connects early stage high-tech companies with growth resources such as corporate buyers, university researchers, incubators, entrepreneurs and other sources of capital. It is a premier conference showcasing the rapidly changing technology landscape within the southeast region.

Sponsors for TechVenture 2010 include, TriNet, Vantage Communications, University of Central Florida and Atlantic.net

Complete information on TechVenture 2010, including registration and conference agenda, is available at: http://www.floridatechnologyjournal.com/tech-venture-2010

About Florida Technology Journal:

Florida Technology Journal is a leading publication for business technology news, serving as the go-to source for more than a quarter million high-tech professionals. Based in Tampa, Florida, the publication’s mission is to promote, educate and connect Florida's high-tech community. Along with TechVenture, Florida Technology Journal also hosts After Five, the Internet Technology Summit and the Florida Technology Leadership Conference. Each event brings together Florida’s technology leaders and entrepreneurs. For more information on the Florida Technology Journal, visit: www.FloridaTechnologyJournal.com. 

Orlando: International Markets Event

By Rafael Gerena, of Instruxo

Dr. Antonio "Tony" Villamil (a former U.S. Undersecretary of Commerce for Economic Affairs) will moderate a panel in Orlando exploring "International Market Trends and Opportunities." The discussion will be one part of an all-day economics forum being held at Orlando International Airport's Hyatt Regency Hotel. Other panelists will include Dr. Robert Cruz (Miami-Dade County Office of Economic Development & International Trade) and Michael Aller (Rollins College).

The event costs $50 to attend if you purchase a ticket in advance, or $65 at the door. For more details - or to register - click here.

CALENDAR NOTE:
The international economics event is Friday afternoon. But Friday morning, you can check out our company's (Instruxo's) exhibit at TechVenture 2010, which will be held at the Sonesta Hotel Downtown Orlando. We'll be discussing ways for Florida companies to boost exports overseas.