Provided by Earl Fry
"The map depicts what U.S. states produce annually in goods and services and how this production compares to nations around the world. Utah’s name has been replaced by Iraq because the Beehive State produced in 2016 somewhat less than the world’s 52nd largest national economy, Iraq, but slightly more than 53rd ranked Algeria. In effect, if Utah were a “nation,” it would rank today as the world’s 53rd largest economy."
Utah’s Global Forum sponsored by the governor’s office will be held Oct. 17. How does Utah stack up as a “global” player?
The World Bank has just released its 2016 rankings of the GDP of 195 nation-states and territories, measured in U.S. dollars. The U.S. Department of Commerce also provides an annual ranking of U.S. state GDPs.
My map appears very strange at first. Instead of Utah, the name inserted is Iraq. To the immediate west is Qatar, north is Myanmar and Jordan, south is the Philippines, and east is Egypt.
The map depicts what U.S. states produce annually in goods and services and how this production compares to nations around the world. Utah’s name has been replaced by Iraq because the Beehive State produced in 2016 somewhat less than the world’s 52nd largest national economy, Iraq, but slightly more than 53rd ranked Algeria. In effect, if Utah were a “nation,” it would rank today as the world’s 53rd largest economy — not bad for a landlockedstate with a mere 3 million inhabitants.
Clearly, Utah and other U.S. states are potentially powerful players in the global economy. In 2016, California and Texas were included among the world’s 10 largest national economies, with 14 U.S. states ranking among the top 25, 28 among the top 50, and all 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia among the top 95.
Last year, Utah-based companies exported goods abroad worth $12 billion, providing 56,000 jobs. Foreign-owned enterprises located in Utah accounted for 38,000 jobs in 2014. Utah also attracted 447,000 international visits in 2015, ranking as the 15th most popular destinationfor foreign visitors traveling to the United States.
Utah has a World Trade Center and World Trade Association, a consulate from Mexico, and honorary consuls from more than two-dozen other countries. Salt Lake City Airport provides nonstop flights to London, Paris and Amsterdam, plus eight other destinations in Canada and Mexico. Utah state government maintains an active international economic development program to promote Utah exports, encourage residents abroad to visit, and foreign investors to locate businesses within the state.
Utah is doing well and taking advantage of one of the country’s most modern infrastructures and youngest work forces. At the upcoming Global Forum and other venues, joint planning by the public and private sectors should result in increased foreign direct investment, tourism from abroad, and small and medium-sized business involvement in exporting. Utah’s “brand” has been growing internationally since it hosted the highly successful 2002 Winter Olympics, and future economic benefits can be substantial by “thinking globally and acting locally.”
Early Fry has been a professor of political science at BYU since 1980 and written on the international policies of U.S. state governments for several decades. He is also a former special assistant in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative.