WCIT Launches New Quarterly Trade Dashboard
Snapshot of Washington state international trade trends to be updated each quarter
Seattle, WA – March 31, 2022. To provide a clear and easily accessible look at the latest data and trends that capture and reflect Washington state’s international trade landscape, the Washington Council on International Trade (WCIT) today launched the WCIT Quarterly Trade Dashboard. The dashboard will be available on the WCIT website and updated every three months, providing the most relevant trade information for Washington businesses, farmers, workers, community leaders and elected officials.
“One of WCIT’s core tenets is to educate our members and the broader Washington state trade community about the benefits and impact smart trade policies have on our livelihoods,” said Lori Otto Punke, President, Washington Council on International Trade. “The Trade Dashboard will be a valuable tool providing our members, stakeholders and all Washingtonians the most up-to-date snapshot on the trends that are impacting the Pacific Northwest economy.”
WCIT introduced the new service this week with data from the fourth quarter of 2021 highlighting relevant statistics in key trade categories covering October through December 2021. The dashboard provides the latest information on a range of areas including tracking of total monthly exports and imports of goods over the past four years, quarterly trade volume handled by Washington state ports, state jobs figures connected to trade, trade related employment broken out by sector, the top export categories and a breakout of the trade trends by export destination, import origins and a breakdown by Congressional districts.
The dashboard also highlights the latest insights for each quarter as derived from an analysis of the data. For example, in Q4 of 2021, Washington state experienced a rebound in exports with $18 billion of goods, a 59 percent increase over the prior quarter and a 39 percent increase over Q4 of 2020.
“We believe that providing this timely information in an easily digestible and understandable form will enable us to identify trends and help determine the underlying causes that will inform our trade advocacy,” said Otto Punke. “We encourage all Washingtonians to check out the dashboard and provide us feedback so we can evolve this tool in a way that will be most helpful to all.”
The WCIT Quarterly Trade Dashboard can be viewed at https://wcit.org/trade-dashboard/
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ABOUT WASHINGTON COUNCIL ON INTERNATIONAL TRADE On behalf of our members – manufacturers, farmers, retailers, service providers and non-profits – the Washington Council on International Trade advocates for pro-trade policies and investments that benefit Washington’s workers and employers. Trade paves the way for Washington-made goods and services to reach foreign markets, provides Washingtonians with products that raise our quality of life, and sustains family-wage jobs in numerous local industries. To learn more, visit us at https://www.wcit.org