Minnesota’s manufactured and agricultural exports rose 13 percent in the first quarter as factories shipped electrical machinery, animal feed, beverages and bulldozers to foreign markets.
The state exported $4.8 billion in goods, a first-quarter record, according to a report released Wednesday.
Canada remains the state’s largest customer, accounting for $1.27 billion in exports, up 16 percent from a year ago. Other top markets for Minnesota exports include China, Japan, Mexico, Germany and South Korea.
The manufacturing sector alone, which accounts for $4.4 billion in exports, was up 12 percent, less than comparable U.S. growth of 16 percent.
Nonetheless, consistent and strong demand in Asia and North America drove growth for Minnesota products. More opportunities in Brazil were part of the reason sales to Central and South America increased by $20 million to $219 million. Exports to the Middle East and Europe were stable.
When asked in May, Minnesota manufacturers foresaw positive growth over the next six months, a Creighton University survey of business conditions found. Those companies doing best are exporting their goods to foreign markets with stronger economies. The cheap dollar helps, making U.S. goods more competitive abroad.
As the recession kicked in, Staging Concepts, a Brooklyn Park manufacturer of portable stages and risers, started ramping up its international sales. “We’ve been more proactive in the past two to three years about it,” said Kari Lessard, the company’s international sales manager. While 10 percent of revenue last year came from international sales, that share is expected to rise to 14 percent of sales this year. The company’s goal is 25 percent of sales in five years.
Staging Concepts developed partnerships in Europe with resellers closely tied to the theater and production markets. Orders also are coming in from customers and resellers in Singapore, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and most recently from Venezuela and Colombia.
“We are getting orders from all these countries,” Lessard said. Orders are coming from schools and universities, theater and production companies and resorts. “We ramped up our international business right before the recession hit and now we’re riding that wave.”
Overall for the state, a big driver of exports was electrical machinery such as industrial furnaces, integrated circuit products and telecommunications equipment. There was growth in the quarter in the sale of buses, bulldozers, liquid pumps and industrial filters.
Big declines came in medical exports, with the steepest drops in sales of orthopedic and artificial body parts, down 29 percent to $161 million. Shipments of medical and surgical instruments dropped, with the biggest declines in the Netherlands and Ireland.
Meat and agricultural commodities such as corn and soybeans saw gains.
Julie Forster can be reached at 651-228-5189.
