U.S. shippers still struggle to generate exports

Despite a promising start this year, U.S. exports are failing to gain the traction needed for sustainable long-term growth.

Slowing growth means that President Obama’s ambitious plan to double outbound trade in five years will fall short, say analysts at Drewry Maritime Research in London.

In his first State of the Union speech in January 2010, President Barack Obama set out an ambitious goal to double exports over the next five years to support 2 million new jobs.

Here’s what Drewry makes of it all:

Following an initial burst that made that target look a realistic possibility, a slowdown in 2012 means that at just past the half-way stage Obama will have to settle for considerably less than he was hoping for.

Between 2009 and 2012 exports of US goods increased by 46% with the biggest gains coming from the automotive (79%) and industrial supplies (69%) sectors, the latter including petroleum and related products. During this time, the fastest growing markets for US goods were Brazil and Mexico (both 68%) while China (now America’s third-largest market after Canada and Mexico) grew by 59%. In contrast, export growth to Europe floundered at below 20%.