Governor Riley and U.S. Chamber Highlight Trade as Essential to Creating Jobs in Alabama

Korea Trade Agreement Represents Most Commercially Significant Deal for State in More Than a Decade

MONTGOMERY, AL—Alabama Governor Bob Riley and Korean Ambassador Han Duk-soo joined the U.S.-Korea Business Council and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce today as part of the Chamber's nationwide tour to highlight the role trade plays in creating jobs, and to urge Congress to pass the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement (KORUS).

"This trade agreement is the most commercially significant deal for Alabama in more than a decade," said Tami Overby, vice president of Asia at the U.S. Chamber and president of the U.S.-Korea Business Council. "It will bring real and immediate economic benefits to the state's businesses, farmers, and workers."

In 2009 alone, Alabama's export shipments of merchandise totaled $12.4 billion, according to the Commerce Department. In 2007, 2,632 companies exported goods and services from Alabama locations. Of those, 2,129 (81%) were small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 500 employees.

"Unfortunately, this state is not immune to the global recession," said Leslie Schweitzer, senior trade advisor of the TradeRoots program at the U.S. Chamber. "Now the question is how to turn the tide and create jobs in order to repair the state's economy. The immediate passage of this trade agreement is a start."

The nationwide tour, which kicked off yesterday in Mobile, will include senior Korean embassy officials, members of Congress, governors, administration officials, business and community leaders, and high level business officials. Local small-to-mid-size business success stories will also be highlighted.

Today's event in Montgomery will include the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce which, as a member of the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama (CCAA), recently endorsed the U.S. Chamber's American Free Enterprise. Dream Big campaign. Along with its endorsement, the Montgomery Area Chamber pledged to help generate a discussion on how to create 20 million jobs nationwide – 286,000 new jobs in Alabama alone – over the next 10 years.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world's largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.

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