The Bay Area is one of the nation’s top exporting regions, ranking second only to the New York–New Jersey metropolitan area in the value of its exports, with overseas sales exceeding all U.S. states except Texas. As a global commercial center, The Bay Area’s economic future is closely iinked to international markets.

The Bay Area Council Economic Institute provides continuing analysis of the Bay Area’s role in global trade; advocates on trade issues at the regional, state and national levels; and serves as a platform for leaders in the regional and California trade service communities to jointly address trade-related issues.

In addition to trade, the Bay area is globally connected through foreign direct investment, links to other technology regions, large numbers of foreign students at its universities, and a globally diverse population and that serves as an important business and cultural bridge. As the premier global center for technology and service innovation and a major center of higher education, the Bay Area powerfully shapes and is shaped by the global economy.

Cross-Border Commercial Ties

• Global Reach: Emerging Ties Between the San Francisco Bay Area and India
  Based on more than two years of research and nearly 200 interviews in both the Bay Area and India, this report documents the historical, cultural, educational, trade and investment links between the two economies and makes a convincing case for the distinctiveness of the Bay Area-India connection and the wide range of business and other opportunities that it presents.
  —November 2009: Full Report (PDF: 2962 pages, 5.2 MB)
  —November, 2009: Extract of Executive Summary Only (PDF: 14 pages, 245 KB)

• Shared Values, Shared Vision: California’s Economic Ties with Canada
  California and Canada maintain broad, deep and longstanding commercial ties that grow out of some remarkable similarities. This report discusses the characteristics that have generated considerable cross-border economic activity and have enabled both countries to leverage important comparative advantages.
  —March 2007 (PDF: 52 pages, 377 KB)

• Ties That Bind: The San Francisco Bay Area’s Economic Links to Greater China
  This report examines The San Francisco Bay Area’s business, economic, educational, historical, and cultural ties to China, documenting the depth and breadth of the region’s engagement with China and the business and other channels that have made the Bay Area the nation’s leading portal for U.S.-China exchange.
  —November 2006 (PDF: 168 pages, 2.5 MB)

Competing in the Global Economy

At the request of the California Department of Business, Housing and Transportation, the Bay Area Economic Forum and the University of California prepared an assessment of California’s competitive position in the global ecomomy, with recommendations for how the State should develop and manage services to promote international trade and investment and assist California companies in global markets. The study was designed to provide the foundation for a new California international trade and investment strategy slated for delivery to the Legislature in 2008.

• Toward a California Trade and Investment Strategy: Potential Roles for the State in Global Market Development
  —March 2007 (PDF: 100 pages, 906 KB)

A Regional Perspective on Global Trade

In 2003, the Bay Area Economic Forum prepared a comprehensive report to facilitate understanding of the importance of international trade to the Bay Area’s economy, and to provide an assessment of global economic conditions, pending international trade agreements, and the trade outlook for specific economic sectors of interest to the region.

Subsequent semi-annual revised editions of the report examine how the patterns identified in 2003 have changed. As a long term trend, the findings suggest that major Bay Area companies across a range of industries are deriving an ever-larger share of their revenues from global sales.

• International Trade and the Bay Area Economy: Regional Interests and Global Outlook 2012–2013
  —March 2013 (PDF: 60 pages, 1.5 MB)
• International Trade and the Bay Area Economy: Regional Interests and Global Outlook 2010–2011
  —December 2010 (PDF: 68 pages, 2.1 MB)
• International Trade and the Bay Area Economy: Regional Interests and Global Outlook 2008
  —September 2008 (PDF: 68 pages, 1.8 MB)
• International Trade and the Bay Area Economy: Regional Interests and Global Outlook 2005–2006
  —July 2005 (PDF: 82 pages, 1.7 MB)
• International Trade and the Bay Area Economy: Regional Interests and Global Outlook 2003–2004
  —January 2003 (PDF: 84 pages, 2.4 MB)