Webinar series explores plastics export opportunities

(NAM) will offer a series of webinars to update U.S. plastics companies on the latest trends and export opportunities in a range of countries, reaching from Europe to India and Russia. Rebecca Balogh, who is normally based overseas for the U.S. Dept. of Commerce’s Commercial Service division, is currently stateside on detail from the Commercial Service as a liaison to NAM. A NAM member, Balogh said SPI was eligible for the program, and from the Commercial Service’s perspective, the series will help the agency’s offices get “up to speed” on plastics overseas.

Balogh told PlasticsToday that the Commercial Service hopes the webinar is just a first step in boosting the export opportunities of U.S.-based plastics companies. “Once we’ve explained the markets, we want to see how we can help the plastics industry do a lot more overseas,” Balogh said. If a company is interested in export opportunities within a country, the U.S. Commercial Service can arrange appointments with agents, distributors, and potential end users. Beyond this webinar series, the agency is planning a pavilion at next fall’s K show in Germany.

The webinar series starts on Oct. 21 with an event featuring commercial specialists from the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Turkey, exploring the market for resins, additives, equipment, machinery, molds, and products in Central and Eastern Europe. To be held from 11:00 AM-12:00 PM (EDT), the webinar’s cost is $35. Representatives from U.S. Dept. of Commerce’s U.S. Commercial Service will present during the event, including trade specialists from the Czech Republic, Hungary, and Turkey.

The Plastics Market Webinar Series will look at how local plastic industries are structured in a variety of locales; who the major competitors are; and how the global economic downturn has affected each market. Future events will cover India (November 3); France, Germany, and Italy (December 3); and Bulgaria, Poland, and Russia (January 19).

Registration information is available here. Balogh said that given the state of the economy over that last 12-18 months, “a lot of the companies that are surviving, are doing so on exports.” —Tony Deligio