Floridas much-traveled governor is expected to focus on Asia for at least one trade mission in 2013.
With trade missions to Spain and Colombia, along with a summer trade exhibition planned for England in the works for this year, Gov. Rick Scott may be the states first governor to visit Japan and South Korea since former Gov. Lawton Chiles in 1997.
You can rest assured that Florida will become much more active in Korea in the years to come, Manny Mencia, Enterprise Florida's senior vice president of international business development, said Tuesday.
Mencia was appearing as part of a panel discussion during the opening day of the two-day Florida Chamber of Commerces International Day at Florida State University.
I can tell you this, Governor Scott has directed us to look at 2013 for very aggressive incursions into the Asian market, Mencia added.
Florida already exports approximately $500 million a year, mostly in agricultural products, to South Korea.
Scott, addressing the conference earlier in the day, said growing international trade will depend on the effort the state puts into it.
If we are the ones traveling the globe and saying 'we want to do more business with you,' people are going to do more business here, Scott said.
See video of Scott's appearance here.
Kimi Springsteen, the Asian-American and international liaison for Hillsborough County Economic Development Department, said Asians are very sensitive and the lack of attention on Asian nations has been embarrassing, since the governors of every other Southern state have traveled to an Asia nation since Chiles' trip.
If the governor goes, there will a lot of reaction from Asia, Springsteen said. I think theyre waking up. They cant ignore Asia.
In October 1997, Chiles led what was at the time the state's largest ever overseas delegation, taking 80 government officials and business executives to Taiwan, Japan and South Korea.
The challenge of planning such a trip this year is that the state will be heavily involved in the elections in the fall and that trips are already in the works for Spain in May, the United Kingdom in July and Colombia in December, Mencia said.
Colombia, like South Korea, is being targeted for trade missions because of a free-trade agreement the Senate approved in October.
The U.S. also signed a free-trade pact with Panama in October. Panama, with an emphasis on the expansion of the Panama Canal, was Scotts first trip of 2011.
By focusing money toward infrastructure needs and dredging at some of the states 15 ports, Florida has been preparing for an increase in international trade that may come with the completion of the canals $15 billion to $25 billion expansion in 2014.
That March trade mission was followed by Scott trips to Canada in June, Brazil in October and Israel in December.
Meanwhile, two years after setting a goal of doubling Florida exports in five years, Florida Chamber of Commerce president and CEO Mark Wilson said the state is on track to meet the goal.
The initial numbers for 2011 indicate that Florida will have a record high of $65 billion in exports of manufactured goods and agricultural products, Wilson said.
We are on pace, Wilson said. And we want to do it again in the following five years.
Exports grew from $46.92 billion in 2009 to $55.22 billion in 2010.
Reach Jim Turner at jturner@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 215-9889.
