Blewett Melton's Blog

Former Ambassador Reviews Economic Opportunities in Brazil

Blewett Melton - International Business — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Rubens Barbosa, who served as Brazilian ambassador to the U.S. from 1999 to 2004, provided an overview of Brazil's growing economy to a full crowd of representatives from Middle Tennessee's international business community yesterday.

Brazil has a population of nearly 200 million, a GDP of $2.5 trillion, and a stable ...

Chinese Officials Talk International Trade in Nashville

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 13:49:02 GMT

Did you know that over the past 10 years, 135 internationally owned companies have relocated and expanded in our area, bringing nearly 12,000 new jobs to the region? I've written before about the importance of international business to our regional economic prosperity. As the global economy continues to rise in ...

Middle Tennessee Businesses Expand Their Global Reach

Blewett Melton - International Business — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT

Many Middle Tennessee businesses have expanded into overseas markets as part of their growth strategies. This recent Nashville Business Journal article spotlights the growing importance and influence of our regional companies that are doing business internationally, such as Clarcor, Louisiana-Pacific and HealthStream.

As of the end of the third quarter ...

Nashville & Tennessee Continue to Welcome Foreign-Owned Companies

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 09:00:00 GMT

Today, almost all companies, large or small, are affected by global events and competition. International business is one of the key components of our Partnership 2020 economic development strategy because we know it is crucial to our regional prosperity.

As communicated in the Chamber and Partnership 2020 Annual Report, the ...

Tennessee and Canada: Preserving Strong Economic Ties

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 13:00:00 GMT

In the economic development field, we're well aware that the rise of the global economy has "changed the game" permanently. In other words, the competition has risen from a regional or statewide level to a worldwide level, and we have to be prepared to keep pace. Because international business is ...

Japanese Economy Recovering in Aftermath of Disasters; Investment in Tennessee Continues

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 14:00:00 GMT

Japan is the world's third-largest economy, and the country's industries play an indispensable role in the world's supply chain. Following the 9.0 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan in March, many economists predicted a "ripple effect" that could continue for years to come.

Yesterday, the Chamber's International Business ...

Assessing the International Economic Impact of the Japanese Disasters

Blewett Melton - International Business — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 10:03:43 GMT

The unprecedented triple disaster that Japan experienced in March represented a major impact on the world's third-largest economy. With thousands of people dead or missing, and material damage estimated to be as high as 25 trillion yen (more than $320 billion), it is by far the world's costliest natural disaster. ...

Nashville Earns Accolades for Top Foreign Direct Investment Strategy

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 08:00:00 GMT

In its 2011-2012 list of "American Cities of the Future," the Financial Times Limited's fDi Magazine ranked Nashville among the top 10 large cities in the U.S., Mexico and Canada for foreign direct investment strategy. The magazine uses a mixture of hard data and expert opinion to rank cities with ...

Nashville Cherry Blossom Festival to Benefit Japanese Disaster Relief

Blewett Melton - International Business — Mon, 21 Mar 2011 09:00:00 GMT

Over the past week and a half, we have all been saddened by the devastation that our friends in Japan are experiencing with the recent earthquake and tsunami.

Tennessee's close relationship with Japan and Japanese companies goes back many years, and continues to grow. Japan has become Tennessee's largest foreign ...

Tennessee is a Player in the Global Economy

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 16:04:55 GMT

With powerhouse international companies like Nissan, Bridgestone Americas, Volkswagen, Louisiana-Pacific and Gibson Guitar calling Tennessee home, our state has grown into the 16th largest exporter in the nation -- which is especially impressive for a landlocked state.

In Middle Tennessee alone, the relocations and expansions of nearly 100 foreign companies ...

Call for Respondents to International Business Survey

Blewett Melton - International Business — Tue, 11 Jan 2011 10:30:00 GMT

Does your company conduct business internationally?

If you answered yes, please take five minutes to complete our international business survey. This annual survey is conducted to help us better understand Nashville’s international presence and to help connect you with other local companies doing business in other markets. We compile ...

Latin America Dispatch: Musings From SMU Grads

Blewett Melton - International Business — Fri, 19 Nov 2010 13:00:00 GMT

In today’s SouthComm posting about the Chamber and Health Care Council International Trade Mission, three delegates – each of whom graduated from Southern Methodist University’s Dedman School of Law in Dallas – discuss the different paths their careers have taken them and their reasons for going on the trip. Click ...

Latin America Dispatch: The Fiscal Lockbox

Blewett Melton - International Business — Thu, 18 Nov 2010 15:00:00 GMT

In today’s SouthComm post about the Chamber and Health Care Council International Trade Mission to South America, former HCA Chairman and CEO Jack Bovender, Healthways’ Nicolas Toth and Pharmaceutical Credit Corp.’s Robert Wolle share their impressions of Chile, where they have just spent three days meeting with business leaders and ...

From Natural Disasters to Health Reform, Discovering Similarities Between Nashville and Chile

Blewett Melton - International Business — Wed, 17 Nov 2010 08:00:00 GMT

This second in a series of daily posts that SouthComm Communications is publishing about our International Trade Mission to South America examines the similarities between Nashville and Chile. Both have recently dealt with the effects of natural disasters, and both prevailed with an outpouring of local, national and even international ...

Health Care Council Markets Nashville to the World

Blewett Melton - International Business — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 10:21:22 GMT

This week, the Nashville Area Chamber and the Nashville Health Care Council are leading a delegation of local business leaders to South America for the ninth International Trade Mission. SouthComm Communications will serve as the exclusive media partner to provide live coverage of the mission. To read today's article, click ...