Editorial by Henry Dubroff in the Pacific Coast Business Times March 29-April 2002 issue.

Supporting world trade

Just around the corner is May, and with it comes a significant opportunity to educate public officials and small businesses about world trade opportunities.

That’s because in large communities across the country, May is the time for celebrating World Trade Week-an effort to promote exports as well as domestic foreign investment. Bill Irion, one of our favorite experts on these matters, points out that Los Angeles has an extremely active World Trade Week program but that the Tri-Counties has lagged far behind. Why? The reasons are hard to fathom. We have one of the most successful ports in North America in the Port of Hueneme. We have world-class agriculture that exports flowers, strawberries, lemons and all sorts of things around the globe. We have wonderful technology companies like Amgen, Vetronix and Vitesse Semiconductor that make products for global markets. We have an impressive new company, Catalytic Solutions, that is owned in part by Honda and is making a revolutionary new catalytic converter. World trade is a significant driver for the Tri-Counties economy. It deserves greater recognition.