Jeremy Rockliff,Minister for Trade
Tasmania’s inaugural Trade Advocate to the United States has been announced following an extensive tender process, with Ms Emily Minson appointed to the role.
This appointment further cements Tasmania’s long-term commitment to the US market and the potential economic value it offers our state’s economy.
Ms Minson brings exceptional knowledge of US trade markets and a wealth of high-level business and government connections to the role.
Her focus will be to work to open or expand markets and sales opportunities in the US, which is already a key market for Tasmanian goods and services.
Tasmania’s exports to the US are currently worth $235 million a year, accounting for some 6.5 per cent of our total goods exports and 22 per cent of our total agricultural and seafood exports.
An Australian citizen, Ms Minson is based in California, the largest and most productive state in the US representing about 14.6 per cent of the total US economy.
We expect our international trade advocacy to be further bolstered in the coming months with the appointment of dedicated Tasmanian Trade Advocates in Japan and Singapore.
In preliminary ABS exports data released today, Tasmania had the third highest annual growth rate in Australia with merchandise exports 2.3 per cent higher in the 12-months to February 2021 than the previous year, bucking the national trend which saw merchandise exports decline by 4.2% over the same period.
The appointment of Tasmania’s new Trade Advocates, a key part of the Tasmanian Trade Strategy 2019-2025 and Annual Action Plan 2021, will further turbo-charge our exports and drive market diversification and expansion.
