Exporting should continue to be strong part of Valley economy

Exporting should continue to be strong part of Valley economy

LIBERTY — Declining auto sales will deliver a punishing blow to Northeast Ohio this year, but the local economy should have a counterpunch of its own, an economist said.

Exporting should continue to be a strong part of the regional economy because the lower value of the dollar makes products made here cheaper, said Ned Hill, a professor at Cleveland State University.

“If you can’t export in this environment, you should get out of the game,” he said today at the Regional Chamber’s economic forecast breakfast at the Holiday Inn MetroPlex.

Ohio companies are in the game, however. Hill said Ohio companies export more than they import, making free-trade agreements a boon for the Ohio economy.

Census figures show that Ohio was the nation’s eighth-largest exporting state in 2006. Its exports that year were valued at $37.8 billion, up 26 percent from 2002.

For more on this story, see Thursday’s Vindicator or Vindy.com.