Alaska 2010 exports valued at $4.2 billion: seafood and minerals top commodities.

• Author: Wolf, Greg
• Position: INTERNATIONAL TRADE

2010 was a banner year for the state's exporting companies as the value of shipments to overseas markets surged to $4.2 billion, an all-time record. While Japan maintained its long-standing rank as Alaska's No. 1 trading partner, continuing significant growth in exports to China accounted for a sizable portion of the increase last year. Another factor fueling the record year was the higher prices received for the state's natural resource exports, especially minerals.

Markets in the Pacific Rim, mainly found in Asia, account for approximately 75 percent of the state's total overseas exports. Japan, China and Korea, respectively, rank as Alaska's top three markets, followed by Canada. These four nations alone account for 70 percent of Alaska exports. Five European countries (Switzerland, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium), along with Australia, round out the top 10 markets for Alaska exports.

SEAFOOD TOPS EXPORT COMMODITIES

Seafood has been and remains Alaska's largest export commodity. In 2010, seafood exports totaled $1.8 billion. Minerals, predominantly zinc and lead, was the second largest export category, totaling $1.3 billion last year. Energy exports, consisting of LNG and coal, ranked third at $418 million. Precious metals (gold and silver) shipments totaled $213 million followed by forest products (mainly whole round longs) at $117 million.

The increase in mineral prices enabled the value of these exports to grow from $853 million in 2009 to $1.3 billion last year, a new record. Zinc prices, which averaged approximately $0.75 per pound in 2009 rose to an average of $0.98 in 2010, a 31 percent increase. Lead prices, too, also experienced a price increase, from an average of $0.78 per pound in 2009 to $0.97 last year, a 24 percent improvement. Rising prices also benefited precious metal exports as both gold and silver prices rose in 2010 versus the prior year. Gold rose from an average of $972 per ounce in 2009 to $1,224 in 2010. Likewise, silver prices increased from about $14 an ounce in 2009 to just over $20 last year.

JAPAN LARGEST TRADING PARTNER

For the past five decades, Japan has been the state's largest trading partner. The country is a significant customer of most categories of Alaska exports, including seafood, minerals, energy and forest products. For example, Japan has been and remains, the No. 1 overseas buyer of Alaska seafood. In 2010, buyers from Japan purchased some $523 million, accounting for 29 percent of...