Ken Hyatt is the Acting Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade. If you have been paying attention to the domestic and global debate taking place over trade, you understand how complex this discussion can be. The arguments in favor of trade often involve discussing public policy, global markets, and economic realities. But sometimes the arguments for trade and investment can be made by just looking at the numbers, because sometimes the numbers truly tell the story. 3.2 billion. That is the number of middle class consumers who will reside in the Asia-Pacific by 2030, comprising two-thirds of the global middle class. That is why we are invested in making the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) a reality, a groundbreaking trade agreement that will allow U.S. exporters to access this pool of future consumers. More to the point, according to the President’s Export Council, which advises the President on trade policy, the single most important step the United States Government can take to promote increased U.S. exports and the continued recovery and growth of the U.S. economy is to secure passage of TPP this year. So that is why we launched our TPP Country Webinar Series to inform stakeholders of commercial opportunities, as well as provide insight into strategies for increasing competitiveness inside our TPP partner markets. The next and final session will focus on Vietnam and take place on October 5th.  You can register by clicking here. We also created a suite of materials that outline the benefits of TPP by industry sector, partner market, and for each of the 50 states. $1.3 trillion. That is the value of goods exports that were shipped out of the country’s 388 metropolitan areas in 2015. 156 metro areas exported $1 billion or more in goods last year as well, with 14 of them exporting more than $20 billion. And despite the headwinds we saw in the global marketplace last year, 63 metropolitan areas achieved record goods exports in 2015. Click here for a full report outlining metro export data for 2015. $9.1 billion. That is the value of trade and investment mobilized at this year’s U.S.-Africa Business Forum, a forum dedicated entirely to deepening trade and investment ties and cultivating business opportunities between the U.S. and the African continent. That $9.1 billion included a deal involving the U.S. construction and mining equipment manufacturer, Caterpillar, which announced a $1 billion investment expansion in business, education, and skills training across Africa. Two related relevant numbers are 5 and 18, as in 5 African heads of state and 18 CEOs participated in the East African Heads of State and CEO Roundtable, which was held on the margins of the Business Forum, to discuss business development, investment opportunities, and economic growth. 2. The U.S and Brazil possess the two largest private healthcare insurance markets in the world. I was reminded of that last week when I participated in a Health IT trade mission to Brazil. I was proud to take part in a mission that brought 9 leading U.S. health solutions providers to share their products and practices with Brazilian counterparts and stakeholders. The trip was a reminder of the fact that deeper healthcare cooperation will not only mean supporting our businesses and workers. It means better confronting the healthcare challenges we have in our own countries as well as complex global health challenges, including the Zika Virus. Finally, there is the number 1. One agency that supports American exporters every day; an agency of 2,200 staff that includes the trade and industry specialists located in our Washington, DC headquarters, in our U.S. Export Assistance Centers in over 100 American cities, and in our Foreign Commercial Service offices in over 75 markets. All of them stand ready to support your export needs, and in the process help bring prosperity to American workers and growth for American businesses. Ken Hyatt