Global Chamber® World Trade Month

On May Day we came together for the Global Chamber® Monthly Exporting, Importing and FDI News Globinar where we officially launched World Trade Month with a global conversation spanning markets, industries, and time zones.

Our monthly globinar serves as a global roundtable where leaders from 195 countries and 605+ metro regions connect to share insights on trade, investment, and cross-border growth.

We opened with a timely and data-driven macro perspective from William Edwards, CFE, AFS, who broke down how oil pricing volatility is influencing global trade flows, logistics costs, and investment decision-making.

Bill's analysis set the tone for a grounded discussion on real-world pressures impacting exporters and importers today. We finished with a broad strategic global trade lens from Özge Tekalp, who delivered a forward-looking perspective on digital transformation, shifting supply chains, and how businesses can adapt to rapidly evolving global trade structures. Her insights brought clarity to where international commerce is heading next.

Between these sessions, we also had a dynamic global exchange featuring leaders from across the network, including Jevin D. Hodge, alongside contributions from participants such as Barbara Engelbart McKenzie, Andrew Wylegala, Neema Mleli, Michael Patterson, Israel (Izzy) Haikin, Tomoko King, Warren Ragland, and more.

Jevin Hodge zoomed in from a golf cart during an outing with Jorge Mendoza Yescas of the Consulate General of Mexico in Phoenix. It’s a reminder that global collaboration is real, unscripted, and human… and the global tribe is ON THE GO.

🌎 Truly Global Participation

The conversation brought together leaders and insights from across:

• 🌍 Africa (including Tanzania and regional chambers)
• 🌍 MENA / Gulf States (including Dubai)
• 🌍 Europe (including emerging Europe and Turkey)
• 🌍 Central Asia (Kazakhstan, India-linked markets)
• 🌍 China
• 🌍 East Asia & Pacific (Japan, Korea, Singapore, Australia)
• 🌍 Latin America (Argentina and broader region)
• 🌍 North America (U.S., Canada, Mexico)

This is part of what makes Global Chamber® different—real-time cross-border intelligence from every major economic region, in one conversation. Not only access to key leaders every day... but every day access to the world.

🎥 Watch the Recording & Download the Presentation

Did you miss the live session or want to revisit the insights?

👉 Watch the full recording on YouTube👉 Download the presentation here

Özge Tekalp's presentation outlined three structural forces reshaping global trade: a sustained decline in trade-to-GDP ratios since the 2008 peak, a gradual shift away from USD dominance in global reserves (now at 57%, down from 73% in 2001), and the rise of technology export controls as a core compliance burden.

Geopolitical conflicts have produced measurable logistics costs — Suez Canal transits dropped 75%, Asia-Europe freight rates rose 20%, and manufacturing input costs remain 31–33% above 2019 baselines with no projected return before 2030.

In response, 78% of Fortune 500 companies are actively diversifying suppliers, working capital requirements have increased by an average of eight days across the S&P 500, and alternative trade routes such as the Trans-Caspian Middle Corridor have grown over 40% in volume.

The presentation closes with five actionable priorities for trade leaders: audit tariff agreement compliance, reduce single-country supplier concentration, reprice freight strategies using current benchmarks, strengthen trade finance structures, and leverage peer networks for real-time market intelligence.

🔄 Why It Matters

These virtual sessions are live intelligence exchanges where leaders:

• Compare real-time trade conditions across regions
• Discover what’s really happening in 195 countries
• Identify emerging investment and supply chain shifts
• Share practical strategies for exporting and importing
• Build trusted global relationships that lead to real business

The goal is simple: Make global trade easier, faster, and more trusted.

📌 Coming Up in World Trade Month

We continue the momentum with upcoming sessions:

📍 May 21 – USMCA Update Globinar (Part 2 of 3) Featuring Thomas Cook and leading experts on North American trade dynamics 👉 https://lnkd.in/gSiYuybX

📍 May 28 – World Trade Month Special Globinar: North America A 2-hour global session featuring keynotes from Dr. Sanjeev Khagram and Francis Tesmer, focusing on trade, investment, and regional competitiveness 👉 https://lnkd.in/gjxQfGcr

🌍 The Global Tribe in Action

Global Chamber® brings together leaders across manufacturing, AI, energy, agriculture, healthcare, FDI, mining, fintech, aerospace, sustainability, and more, creating one of the most diverse global business ecosystems in the world.

Because every day, week and month we ask the same essential question:

How can the collective knowledge of the global tribe help each of us grow faster and smarter across borders?

We gather. We exchange. We learn. We move global trade forward together.

Be global and UNSTOPPABLE! 🌍