MO exports up 13 percent in 3Q

Missouri's third-quarter exports increased 12 percent to $3.5 billion, up from $3.1 billion in the same quarter last year.

The latest quarterly exports pushed the total for the year to $10.6 billion, a 13 percent increase from $9.3 billion earned in the same period of 2010, according to a Missouri Department of Economic Development news release.

Missouri's top exporting sectors for the first three quarters were transportation, $2.6 billion, and chemicals, $2 billion.

The largest growth sectors were minerals and ores, which has increased by 69 percent, followed by a 60 percent increase in coal and petroleum gases, a 41 percent increase in waste and scrap, and a 20 percent rise in miscellaneous manufactured commodities, the release said.

For the year, the largest foreign markets for Missouri exports are:

• Canada, $3.3 billion;
• Mexico, $1 billion;
• China, $870 million;
• Korea, $518 million;
• Japan, $430 million; and
• Belgium, $392 million.

Near the end of October, Gov. Jay Nixon led a trade delegation comprising Missouri business and agriculture leaders to China. During the trip, the state closed $4.6 billion in export agreements to China during the next three years.

"Today's global marketplace demands that we have a global strategy, one that leverages the strength of Missouri's farmers, ranchers, producers and manufacturers, and empowers them to sell their products abroad and create jobs at home," Nixon said in a separate news release. "We will continue to work every day to ensure that more companies across Missouri can sell their products in every corner of the globe, and that the people of the world know the quality behind those three words: Made in Missouri."[[In-content Ad]]