Here’s how China is responding to US sanctions—with blocking laws and other countermeasures. After a recent meeting between U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and officials in Beijing, China released a statement demanding “practical action” over the issue of sanctions. (The Conversation)

What AI means for growth, incomes and inflation. If rapidly advancing artificial intelligence is as important for industries and jobs as many people think it is, it will have massive implications for economy-wide productivity, growth, incomes, inflation and more. (Axios)

What happens after the US economy’s soft landing? The U.S. economy has defied the doomsayers once again. More than a year has passed since a recession was seen as a foregone conclusion and a “soft landing” pronounced near impossible. (Harvard Business Review)

Bolivia hikes lithium resources estimate to 23 million tons.  Bolivia's lithium resources are now estimated at 23 million metric tons, its president said on Thursday after government studies that further cement the South American country's position as the global leader in lithium resources. (Reuters)

Canadian labor union calls off strike, again, after a day of ‘turmoil’ at West Coast ports. $6.5 billion in trade is anchored offshore of Canada and the restart of the strike will add to supply chain congestion that already built up during the initial strike’s 13-day period. (CNBC)

UPS is massive. Here's a visual breakdown of how a strike could impact delivery globally. UPS and Teamsters, the union representing nearly 340,000 UPS workers are trying to reach a new five-year labor contract before the current contract expires at midnight July 31. (USA Today)

Why Russia pulled out of its grain deal with Ukraine. The Russia-Ukraine grain deal that has been critical to keeping global food prices stable and preventing famine is currently in tatters. (The Conversation)

China's sagging economy looms over quarterly results around the world. China's frail growth could weigh on companies with exposure to the world's second-largest economy, including Apple, big chipmakers and luxury retailers as they report quarterly results in the next few weeks. (Reuters)

Yellen visits Vietnam, seeking to build US ties and supply chains, and offset tensions with China. The U.S. considers building strong economic and security ties with Vietnam a priority, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday as she met with Vietnamese officials in a visit aimed at fortifying America’s relations across Asia. (AP)

China’s economy misses growth forecasts, raising the odds of more support for its tepid recovery. China’s economic growth missed forecasts in the second quarter of the year, adding to worries over surging youth unemployment and a weak property sector and raising the likelihood the government will double down on support for the faltering post COVID-19 recovery. (AP)

India, Sri Lanka agree to boost economic and energy ties. Sri Lankan president’s visit to India signals growing ties between neighboring countries as both agree to boost cooperation in various sectors. (Al Jazeera)

TSMC: Chip giant delays Arizona production in blow to Biden. Chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC) has delayed the start of production at its factory in the U.S. state of Arizona, in a setback to President Biden's technology ambitions. (BBC)

India bans rice shipments to curb price rises. India has outlawed the export of non-basmati white rice in an attempt to ward off looming domestic price spikes. (BBC)

Global Trade Intelligence: The Key to Business Success in a Connected World

Jamilex Gotay, editorial associate

More and more credit professionals are based in or working with customers overseas. To keep up with the ever-changing landscape of global trade, credit professionals must sharpen their international credit and risk management skills, especially as the C-suite turns to the credit team for guidance on global trade. Credit managers have the knowledge to help their businesses thrive in an increasingly connected and modern world economy.

“After having prior experience in credit risk management for some years, I felt it was the right time to enhance my understanding of international credit risk,” said Cecilia Sandman, CICP, credit risk analyst at UPM-Kymmene Corporation (Helsinki, Finland), a graduate of FCIB’s International Credit and Risk Management (ICRM) 13-week online course. “Before enrolling in the course, I had a good understanding of financial statement analysis. After taking the course, I delved deeper into the comprehensive order-to-cash process.”

The ICRM course provides valuable information on global trade credit including financial analysis, foreign exchange risk, letters of credit and the additional three C’s of Credit—country, culture and currency. “Understanding why these international trade credit risks are important prompted me to make immediate changes to our international customer onboarding process,” said Haley Hagin Fimbres, CBA, CICP, credit manager at Superfeet Worldwide LLC (Ferndale, WA). “I also learned how to mitigate those risks and tools to ensure payment.”

By increasing knowledge of all things international trade, credit professionals can strengthen their relationships with international customers. “I was interested in learning about better trade instruments but also hearing about the first-hand experience of creditors from different industries across the globe,” said Agnieszka Dragowska, CICP, credit management global process owner at Sulzer (Madrid, Spain). “The course raised my awareness to specific aspects of credit risk and gave me insights into how my colleagues work in other companies.”

Even if you do not have international customers, the ICRM course can help you make better credit decisions for when you embrace international trade credit in the future. “Factoring and forfaiting were my areas of interest prior to taking the course,” said Mindy Neves, CICP, financial shared services manager at Hilmar Cheese Company, Inc. (Hilmar, CA). “I am pleased to have this information in my toolkit now and for the future.”

The ICRM online course allows flexibility for credit professionals in any time zone. Students who recently passed the ICRM course hailed from around the world—including India, Singapore, the Netherlands, the U.S., Saudi Arabia, Brazil, United Arab Emirates, Mexico and China. By passing the ICRM course, you will earn a certificate of completion and permanently become a part of a global expert network filled with credit friends who you can count on for years to come. And if you pass the final exam, you will earn the Certified International Credit Professional (CICP) designation. The CICP is a globally recognized mark of distinction that signals to employers the holder has mastered a broad range of global credit management concepts.

Enrollment for the Fall ICRM course is officially open. Register by Aug. 4 to qualify for early bird pricing. The course runs from Sept. 4-Dec. 8.

 

Week in Review Editorial Team:

Annacaroline Caruso, editor in chief

Jamilex Gotay, editorial associate

Kendall Payton, editorial associate