Asia now, Asia the future for Alaska's international trade.

• Author: Wolf, Greg
• Position: SPECIAL SECTION: International Trade

What happens across the Pacific Ocean has always been important to Alaska's export industries. For many decades, Alaska's main international trade partners have been the major markets in Asia. As the late Alaska Governor Walter Hickel put it, "our political ties are with the United States, but our economic ties are with Asia." Last year was no exception. In 2016, total exports from Alaska to Asian nations amounted to almost $2.7 billion (January-October data). This accounts for nearly 70 percent of the state's total worldwide exports.

The state's top trading partners have remained consistent for the past ten years: China, Japan, and South Korea, in that order. Alaska has trade relations with other Asian countries, of course, but at present they are considerably smaller markets for the state's exports and they are not typically ranked in the top ten of Alaska export markets. In the future, these now smaller markets may play a larger role as their economies continue an upward trajectory and their demand for natural resources grows accordingly.

Asia Factors

There are several factors that account for Alaska's concentration of exports to Asia.

First, Alaska enjoys geographic proximity to Asia Pacific. There are well-established transportation lanes both by sea and air connecting Alaska to its Pacific Rim neighbors. Often, shipping distances from Alaska to Asian destinations are shorter and, thus, less expensive than those shipments originating from alternative suppliers elsewhere in the world.

Second, Alaska is resource-rich while many Asian countries are resource-poor. In some cases, these countries may lack certain vital resources altogether or may not have them in sufficient quantities to meet their needs. Indeed, Alaska, if looked at as a nation unto itself, would rank in the in the top ten worldwide for its reserves of coal, copper, zinc, lead, gold, and silver.

Third, as a part of the United States, Alaska offers political stability and minimal security risks for conducting business or making financial investments. This is an important consideration for countries relying on imports of vital natural resources. Some of Alaska's competitors are arguably less stable.

Alaska Factors

In Asia, Alaska pioneered the concept, later adopted by dozens of other states, to establish trade offices in key markets to promote trade and investment. Alaska has the distinction of being the first American state to open a trade office in Tokyo, Japan, having...