World Trade Center-Kansas City News: January, 2023

A LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR

Happy New Year from World Trade Center – Kansas City! After an eventful and productive 2022, we look forward to starting the New Year strong. Take a look at some highlights from 2022, excerpted from our Annual Impact Report:

  • Hosted Foreign Officials from eight countries
  • Graduation for the 1st Heartland Export Accelerator Cohort
  • Collaborated with five World Trade Centers globally

We finished 2022 on a high note with our Doing Business with Taiwan event on December 14. Director General Bill S.C. Huang of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Denver spoke with Kansas City businesses on available opportunities, industry outlooks, and best practices for business success between Kansas City and Taiwan. 

Our focus for 2023 is connecting KC businesses doing international business at all levels and sizes across sectors. We are launching our new event series, “Talking Trade” for 2023. Join other area business leaders and us for coffee and networking to discuss international trade topics. These events will be held every other month. Our inaugural event will be on January 18, in partnership with the Mid-America LGBT Chamber of Commerce, hosted by Shook Hardy Bacon. Register for the event here.

We look forward to helping you with your international trade needs in 2023.

Events

Talking Trade: Coffee & Networking Event
WTC-KC, Mid-America LGBT Chamber, Shook, Hardy, & Bacon L.L.P
January 18
Register here

World of Concrete 2023
U.S. Department of Commerce & World of Concrete
January 17-19
Register here

Growth360 Application
Missouri SBDC at UMKC
January 19
Apply here

DISTRIBUTECH International 2023
DISTRIBUTECH International
February 7-9
Register here

2023 Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Seminar
Hydrogen & Fuel Cell Seminar
February 7-9
Register here

POWERGEN International 2023
POWERGEN International
February 21-23
Register here

 

 

Building the Future: Climate Actions Executive Forum
U.S. Commerical Service - Mexico City
February 22-24
Email: Hector.Rodriguez@trade.gov

Executive-Led Middle East Cleantech Trade Mission
U.S. Commerical Service (USCS)
March 12-17
Apply here

TradeWinds ASEAN
U.S. Commercial Service (USCS) 
March 13 – 15, 2023
Register here

CONEXPO-CON-AGG 2023
U.S. Commerical Service (USCS)
March 14-19
Register here

WEConnect International Day 2023
WEConnect International
March 20
Register here

NOG Energy Week
International Trade Administration (ITA)
July 2-6
Save the date

 

 

Dispatches from DC

Photo of World Cup trophy being held up with sky behind.

This year, the 2022 FIFA World Cup began on Sunday, November 20 hosted by Qatar, making it the first World Cup to take place in the Middle East. Behind local residents, the U.S. purchased the most tickets, equating to 3 million tickets. In 2010, Qatar won its bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup which sparked controversy due to certain laws and restrictions by their government. In 2020, Qatar established labor reforms to counteract the standard of companies and the minority citizen population of Qatar having control over migrant workers’ employment, movement, and immigration status, although it is reported that these reforms haven’t been implemented and enforced properly. According to CNN, Qatar prepared for the influx of travelers by investing around “$220 billion into building an entirely new city, a state-of-the-art metro system, and hundreds of new hotel and apartment buildings.” 

World Cup fans were still restricted from doing certain activities in Qatar. They relaxed certain laws including allowing fans to drink alcohol in specific zones (although it was still banned in the stadium) and allowing men and women to mingle even though watching games was only allowed for men. After hosting the 2022 FIFA World Cup, Qatar will have the opportunity to demonstrate to the world that they are shifting cultural and societal norms beyond the final game. The 2022 World Cup concluded with Argentina victorious. The White House designated a Presidential Delegation to the State of Qatar to attend the Closing Ceremonies in Doha. International sporting events, like the FIFA World Cup, function as vehicles for international relations and even can be seen as microcosms of larger global tensions, as evidenced in the 2022 tournament.

In 2026, the United States, Canada, and Mexico will jointly host the FIFA World Cup. With Kansas City being 1 of 11 U.S. cities chosen (New York, Los Angeles, Dallas, Houston, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Miami). The schedule hasn’t been announced yet, but it is expected that at least 4 World Cup matches and potentially 5 to 7 will be played at Arrowhead Stadium. Hosting the World Cup has huge economic benefits for the city and will bring millions of dollars to Kansas City. It will bring massive exposure regarding tourism, international trade, jobs, and new developments. In preparation for hosting the World Cup, Kansas Citians should expect large investments in new infrastructure including renovations to the Kansas City International Airport, road construction, the extension of the KC Streetcar, public transportation projects, and new hotel and apartment buildings. Learn more about what Kansas City should expect with the arrival of 2026 FIFA World Cup here.

WHAT WE'RE LISTENING TO

Photo of phone playing podcast and hand writing in notebook.

Big entertainment bets: World Cup & Avatar

What will be the buzzwords of 2023?

RESOURCES

Photo of hands typing on laptop with computer monitor in the background.

A practical approach to the new Trans-Atlantic Data Privacy Framework
Dentons
Read here

Trade Law Update
Husch Blackwell
Read here