Category Archives: Export Compliance

Amber Road Honored with Supply & Demand Chain Executive 100 Award

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Amber Road is pleased toKey announce that it received Supply & Demand Chain Executive‘s Top 100 Award for 2013, in partnership with Swedish customer Sandvik Aktiebolag. This is the ninth year Amber Road has been recognized by the publication for its dedication to providing customers with superior global supply chain solutions.

The SDCE 100 spotlights successful and innovative supply chain projects delivering bottom-line value to small, medium and large enterprises. The transformative projects featured in this awards program can serve as a roadmap for driving operational improvements.

Amber Road submitted for the award in partnership with Sandvik Aktiebolag, a Swedish customer specializing in high-technology engineering. Sandvik’s successful implementation of Amber Road’s Export On-Demand solution helped the company mitigate their trading risk on a global scale, while improving the quality and reliability of its export controls.

Click here to read the entire press release.

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Survey of Mid-Market Companies Highlights Good News/Bad News for U.S. Exporters

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A new white paper released today by Amber Road found that mid-market companies are increasingly at risk for violating U.S. export regulations. This is especially concerning because U.S. export volumes are on the rise. According to a recent U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis report, U.S. exports grew 7.7% from January 2011 to January 2012.

Amber Road surveyed 150 mid-market companies about their export compliance processes. They found that 23% do not screen for restricted parties prior to engaging with trading partners and customers, and only 41% have a comprehensive export compliance program in place. Not surprisingly, survey respondents pointed to a lack of executive sponsorship as a primary reason for their companies’ trade compliance deficiencies.

To learn more, read the full press release, or download a copy of the white paper.

 

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US-South Korea FTA Goes into Effect Tomorrow!

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The US–South Korea Free Trade Agreement will go into full effect tomorrow, March 15, 2012.  With this FTA, roughly 80% of US exports of industrial products to South Korea will be duty free, while two-thirds of US exports of agricultural products will also become duty-free.

The International Trade Commission estimates that the reduction of South Korean tariff and non-tariff quotas on goods alone will add between $10 and $12 billion to the annual US GDP, and around $10 billion to annual merchandise exports to South Korea.  According to Ron Kirk, Ambassador of the U.S. Trade Representative, once the agreement goes into effect, it will open up South Korea’s $1 trillion economy and strengthen our economy’s partnership with a key Asia Pacific Ally.  To read more about the new free trade agreement, click here.

Is your company prepared to take advantage of this duty-saving opportunity?

The most common reason companies do not take advantage of FTAs is the administrative burden of identifying applicable FTAs and qualifying products. With over 100 FTAs in place around the world, manually administering trade agreements is understandably difficult. Global Trade Management solutions, however, can help you manage the solicitation and qualification process with your suppliers.

To find out how your company can automate this complex process and take advantage of the US-South Korea Free Trade Agreement, check out Amber Road’s Trade Agreement Management solution.

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New Trade Enforcement Agency Established

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President Obama recently signed an executive order, establishing the Interagency Trade Enforcement Center (ITEC) within the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR).  The Obama administration is aimed at doubling exports by the year 2015, and this new agency will help facilitate that goal.

According to Ron Kirk, Ambassador of USTR, the ITEC is among the most significant commitment of resources and expertise since the establishment of the USTR. The purpose of the Interagency Trade Enforcement Center will be to coordinate U.S. trade rights under international agreements, monitor unfair trade practices, as well as identify and eliminate foreign trade barriers. These tasks will hopefully curb the production of counterfeit and unsafe goods and improve market access for U.S. exporters. The ITEC will also strengthen trade enforcement of intellectual property laws.

Chairman of the House Trade Working Group, Rep. Mike Michaud (D-Maine), said, “Signing this order brings us one more important step closer to the level of trade enforcement we need to counter the predatory practices of countries like China.”

Based on the signed executive order, the mission and function of The Interagency Trade Enforcement Center will be to:

(a) serve as the primary forum within the Federal Government for USTR and other agencies to coordinate enforcement of U.S. trade rights under international trade agreements and enforcement of domestic trade laws;

(b) coordinate among USTR, other agencies with trade related responsibilities, and the U.S. Intelligence Community the exchange of information related to potential violations of international trade agreements by our foreign trade partners; and

(c) conduct outreach to U.S. workers, businesses, and other interested persons to foster greater participation in the identification and reduction or elimination of foreign trade barriers and unfair foreign trade practices.

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Upcoming Trade Compliance Webinar – Oil & Gas Industry

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Join World Trade 100 and Amber Road (formerly Management Dynamics, Inc.) on Thursday December 15th at 2 PM EST for a complimentary webinar, Global Trade Compliance in the Oil & Gas Industry: A Case Study with Weatherford.

Global trade experts will explain the importance of automating trade compliance processes and the difficulties oil and gas companies face, as well as present recent developments in the industry. By attending this webinar, you will walk away with:

-  A better understanding of the export compliance challenges oil and gas companies are facing
-  Various strategic considerations to think about when implementing an automated trade compliance solution
-  Best practices you can use to improve your company’s export compliance processes

Speakers will include:
Scott Byrnes, Vice President of Marketing, Amber Road (formerly Management Dynamics, Inc.)
Natalia Shehadeh, Director of Trade Compliance, Weatherford
Scott Johnston, Attorney, Specializing in U.S. Import/Export Law, Givens & Johnston, PLLC

Join us and find out how you can automate your trade compliance process!

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Management Dynamics Changes Name to Amber Road!

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New Name Marks Continued Growth and Evolution for Global Trade Management Leader

Management Dynamics, a leading provider of Global Trade Management solutions, today announced that it has changed its name to Amber Road.  The name change comes during a year of rapid expansion, marked by a 40% growth in employees, a 325% increase in European bookings, and the opening of a flagship office in Tysons Corner, Virginia.  This breakout year is anchored by a 33% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in overall revenue for the past decade.

“Today, our SaaS-based solutions span fourteen software products that include global transportation management, import/export compliance, supplier management, supply chain visibility and a content knowledgebase covering trade regulations and tariffs for more than 120 countries, “  said Jim Preuninger, CEO.

To learn more, please read the full press release or visit http://www.amberroad.com/.

 

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Management Dynamics FTA Solution Poised to Assist Importers and Exporters to Capitalize on Reduced Duties

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On October 12, the United States Congress ratified several landmark free trade agreements (FTAs) with South Korea, Colombia and Panama. While still awaiting the President’s signature, which is expected, these agreements are sure to usher in a new level of trade activity with these countries.

Proponents list a host of benefits from FTAs, including:

- Expanded access to markets for both goods and services

- Greater protection of intellectual property rights, and a

- Growth in jobs that would accompany the opening of new markets

Taking this into consideration, Management Dynamics offers a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (FTA) management solution that provides solicitation and qualification in order to determine if a company’s product is eligible for preferential treatment. This can have a significant impact on the applicable duties for their products resulting in reduced total landed costs.

To learn more about the Free Trade Agreement Solution, read the full press release here.

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BIS Publishes New “Best Practices” for Exporters

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The U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) recently released a new set of best practices that are aimed at helping exporters, re-exporters and freight forwarders guard against the diversion of dual use items shipped to a transshipment hub.  While transshipments are a growing part of international trade and offer many benefits, they can be used illegally to either disguise the final destination or divert trade to unauthorized end users.

The new set of best practices encourages exporters to maintain strong internal compliance strategies, conduct focused outreach, and continuously raise awareness of export control regulations and obligations.

The following is a summary of the best practices published by BIS:

- Companies should pay attention to the Red Flag Indicators on the BIS website.

- Companies should seek to utilize Trade Facilitators that administer sound export management and compliance practices.

- Companies should “know” their foreign customers – by obtaining detailed information to measure the risk of diversion.

- Companies should avoid routed transactions when exporting and facilitating the movement of dual-use items.

- When the Destination Control Statement (DCS) is required, companies should provide the appropriate Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) and the final destination where the item(s) are intended to be used.

- Companies should provide the ECCN or the EAR99 classification to freight forwards, and should report this information in AES.

- Companies should use information technology to the maximum extent feasible to augment “know your customer” and other due-diligence measures.

For more detailed information, please read the full article.

 

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Doubling Exports Needs Redoubling of Effort

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Remember the Obama Administration plan to double exports as a way to rebuild the US economy? Well it looks like the one part vision and a pinch of desire to change is not enough.  The New York Times has analyzed the progress so far, with mixed results, and highlights the many barriers to achieving the goals of the National Export Initiative (NEI).

The challenges include:

  • Manufacturing Leadership. We are becoming more and more of a service economy.  As the country is fighting to exit the recession, companies are uncertain of their ability to access capital and invest in the US in this time of increasing regulation and taxes.  Simply put,  manufacturing capacity and jobs are being exported (but unfortunately don’t count towards the doubling objective).  So if you aren’t producing more how do you export more?
  • The Rising Strength of the Dollar. The Euro bottomed with the banking crisis and has caused the dollar to appreciate.  While China has talked about slowly appreciating the renminbi, it is still promoting a steady flow of exports to world markets, and increasing competition for US Exports.
  • The Political Sensitivity of Trade Agreements.  As the election year approaches, I can’t see Congress getting too aggressive on trade agreements.  Clearly from a State-level there are winners and losers when trade agreements like NAFTA are implemented.  Who is going to fire up the old job debate now when the economy is stuck in neutral and slowly rolling backwards?

Exports in the first four months of 2010 have increased by 17 % versus the same period in 2009. However today we learned that the real trade deficit increased in June from $46bn to $54bn.

Clearly we aren’t playing on a level field and struggle with trade barriers erected by countries around the world.   For example, a wine industry expert says, “The single most restrictive barrier to wine exports remains the high import tariffs of most of the major markets buying U.S. wine today.”

Read more about the barriers to increasing exports at the New York Times: Hurdles Deter Obama’s Pledge to Double Exports.

Thanks to Lauren for the inspiration for this post.

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Interested to Benchmark Your Export Operations?

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I ran across this report from Management Dynamics.  Check it out.

Benchmark Report: Export Compliance Management

This report profiles export compliance programs of large, small, & medium-sized enterprises in many industries to reveal challenges companies face in managing export compliance. Receive a copy of the Export Compliance Benchmark!

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