Van Andel Global Trade Center is offering two virtual trainings to cover general USMCA requirements as well as automotive specific topics to prepare companies for the July 1 implementation.
LANSING, Mich – Michigan’s small business owners are in a bind. They appreciate the original intent and need for the state-mandated Stay Home, Stay Safe orders that were put in place to stop the spread of COVID-19 in Michigan, but they feel trapped by the uncertainty of what may come next. Respondents to the latest MFBI are clearly concerned about COVID-19 and the toll it has taken on Michiganders, but they feel certain that they will have plans in place and a responsibility to keep their customers and employees safe when they reopen.
Presented in Conjunction with Tariffs Hurt the Heartland
May 13, 2020, 12-1pm, a virtual event addressed the issues of tariffs and trade. You're welcome to review the Agenda.
Shared below is a way to see the recent event.
Still More Than 10 Times Pre-Viral Recession Levels
Initial claims for unemployment insurance fell for a sixth straight week, to 2.981 million for the week ending May 9. Claims were revised slightly higher for the week ending May 2 to 3.176 million.
The April jobs report was by far the worst in U.S. history.
Employment, as measured by a survey of establishments that goes back to 1939, fell by 20.5 million, easily surpassing the previous all-time high of 1.959 million jobs lost in one month in 1945, after the end of World War II. Job losses in March were revised from a loss of 701,000 to a loss of 870,000. During the Great Recession in 2007 to 2009, the biggest month of job losses was 800,000, and total job losses were 8.7 million. Thus, after just two months, job losses of 21.4 million during the Viral Recession have more than doubled those during the two years-plus during the Great Recession.
AnnMarie Schneider is the director of the Canadian Studies Center at Michigan State University, as well as the Director for Program Planning and Development of the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research. She is especially involved in Michigan’s trade relationships and has focused on shared infrastructure and supply chain, including the new Gordy Howe Bridge and as well as ports and rail connections.
Most of us in Michigan tend to take our relationship with Canada for granted, and see Canadians as very much like us. In this segment, AnnMarie talks about the fact that Canadians do not see the relationship the same way but see us as quite different from them. She discusses how important our differences are, and how they enrich our relationship and opportunity to learn from each other.
With Biggest Drop in Exports Ever, Will Narrow in Near Term
The U.S. trade deficit widened to $44.4 billion in March, from $39.8 billion in February. Both exports and imports fell over the month as the coronavirus pandemic disrupted global supply chains and the ensuing U.S. and global recessions have reduced demand both at home and abroad.
