Trade with Asia hugely beneficial to U.S., Pa.

By Satu Limaye

and Dennis Blair

The 2016 presidential election has ignited renewed interest from the American public in weighing the benefits and importance of U.S. engagement in Asia. At the first debate between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump on Sept. 26, the topic of Asia arose several times. The Republican nominee said jobs are being stolen and that nations are "using our country as a piggy bank" while not paying adequately for mutual defense arrangements.

America's anxieties about the economic challenge from Asia are understandable. Some jobs in some sectors have been lost to Asia, beginning with textiles and clothing after World War II, and continuing with inexpensive electronics, steel, and shipbuilding.

The rapid economic growth of China, India, South Korea, Vietnam, and other countries is seen as negatively affecting American job prospects, whether the issue is innovation, preferential visas for immigrants, artificially propped currency values, or outsourcing.

Yet the facts tell a different story: Trade, foreign investment, Asian students at American universities, tourism, and even immigration create hundreds of thousands of jobs for Americans.

Now zero in on Japan. More than 710,000 jobs in the United States are supported by exports to Japan.

The U.S.-Japan relationship is one of the closest, most wide-ranging, and constructive bilateral partnerships in the world. The United States and Japan are global powers by the size of their economies, ranking first and third, respectively, as well as per capita wealth, investment and trade relations, quality of life, and military spending. Though home to less than 10 percent of the world's population, together they account for about 30 percent of the global economy, 29 percent of outward foreign direct investment (FDI) stock, 21 percent of inward FDI stock, and 16 percent of world trade. And a significant portion of this economic impact can be seen directly in Pennsylvania.

Using largely U.S. government data, a project from the East-West Center and Sasakawa USA called Japan Matters for America shows remarkable economic and employment gains from America's interactions with Japan - something we'll be exploring further on Thursday when we join with the World Affairs Council of Philadelphia for a public event featuring expert panel discussions on topics such as the strategic importance of U.S.-Japan relations; U.S. economic interests in Asia and Japan; and Japan's footprint in Pennsylvania.

The event will feature speakers from the partner organizations, as well as Fred Bergsten, senior fellow and director emeritus with the Peterson Institute for International Economics, and Ronn Cort, president and COO of Sekisui SPI, northwest of Philadelphia in Bloomsburg.

Take trade: The United States exported to Japan $408 billion in goods in 2012, and $156 billion in services in 2011, more than to the European Union or to Canada or to Mexico. Asia is, in fact, the leading destination for U.S. exports, with strong growth since the 2009 financial crisis.

Japan alone is a key U.S. trading partner, ranking fourth for good exports in 2014. In the same year, the United States was Japan's top trading partner. In Pennsylvania alone, $2.7 billion in goods and services were exported to Japan in 2013. Those exports support 17,000 Pennsylvanian jobs and boost productivity, especially in the manufacturing, transportation, and retail sectors.

Foreign direct investment from the Asia-Pacific region also creates American jobs. It is estimated that Japanese direct investment in the United States accounts for more than 700,000 jobs - including 23,100 American workers at 74 Japanese-owned firms in Pennsylvania.

Japan's benefit to America and Pennsylvania is increasing in many other areas, as well. Japanese students studying abroad in the United States contribute $600 million to the U.S. economy ($17 million just in Pennsylvania). More American students are interested in studying about Japan, and the commonwealth has 30 Japan studies programs - the third-most of any state. These programs can be found in Philadelphia and the surrounding area at Haverford College, the University of Pennsylvania, La Salle, Temple, St. Joseph's, and others.

Japan also increasingly contributes to U.S. tourism, ranking fourth globally as a source of more than 9.4 million visitors who spent $17 billion in the United States in 2014. In 2013, Pennsylvania's share of those tourism dollars was $429 million.

These interactions between the United States and Japan will continue to grow in the years ahead, improving the American economic and employment outlook.

Satu Limaye is director of the East-West Center in Washington. washington@eastwestcenter.org

Retired Adm. Dennis Blair is chairman and CEO of Sasakawa USA. info@spfusa.org