 of our nation's most successful exporters and export promoters. You've come here today from all corners of the United States. You represent many businesses of every size. To date, nearly 2,000 companies and business organizations have received the E and the E-Star awards. As you are all well aware, trade expansion is an important part of President Reagan's trade policy, and you and your companies serve as important examples for other American firms to follow in increasing our nation's exports. We're confident that the President's trade policy will further assist you being part of this ceremony, and I know all of you take equal pride in serving your country as Americans' leaders in exporting. Congratulations to all of you for your extraordinary effort and your great success in promoting exports. I'm going to return in a moment with the President and Ambassador Yider for the ceremony. President of the United States, accompanied by Secretary Baldrige and Ambassador Yider. Well, please be seated, Secretary Baldrige, Ambassador Yider. Good morning to all of you, and welcome to the White House. It's an honor to have you join us to help celebrate World Trade Week. Together we can underscore the significance of international trade to our nation and the world. By the way, I can't help but recall that in my former career I had something to do with exporting for overseas markets myself. In those days, American motion pictures occupied more than 75% of the playing time of all the screens of the world. Unfortunately, the movies that we sent overseas sometimes, well, they weren't always successful. I had one called Cattle Queen of Montana. It lost something in Japanese, but it's important for us Americans to reflect upon the extent to which our nation is involved in international trade. One in six of our manufacturing jobs and one in four of our farm makers produce merchandise for overseas markets. Roughly speaking, every billion dollars worth of American manufactured goods exported means more than 25,000 American jobs. Overall today, nearly five and a half million American jobs are connected to exports. And yet, despite its importance, international trade faces serious challenges. Large and sometimes massive trade imbalances among the major trading nations have given rise to strong protectionist feeling both here at home and abroad. Yet ever since the disaster of the 1930s, Schmute-Hawley tariffs, we've known that protectionism doesn't work. Now, the way to promote worldwide prosperity is not to erect barriers, but to bring them down. Not to decrease international trade, but to expand it. We're working to do just that. Our approach has been threefold. First, we're doing all we can to provide an economic environment that's conducive to exports around the globe, international economic stability, innovation and growth. And in this regard, we're having historic success. Here at home, our own economy has grown for 41 months, creating more than nine and three-quarter million American jobs. Inflation in our nation is running at the lowest level in two decades, and the prime rate of interest has dropped by 60 percent since we took office. Abroad, we've been working to achieve closer economic policy coordination between nations, foster improved global growth and promote greater exchange rate stability. Indeed, closer economic coordination between us and our trading partners was agreed upon at the Tokyo summit. We're pleased to see the other nations, in part spurred by our own growth, in part following our example of low taxes and limited government, have a good outlook for more economic growth of their own. The Plaza agreement that was reached last September has contributed to substantial exchange rate changes, improving our own competitive position. And the debt problem in lesser developed countries is being addressed providing expanded markets for American trade. All this adds up to a sound basis for a wider and freer world trade. Second, we're working to remove foreign trade barriers that may be blocking the sale of otherwise competitive American products. As I said in my trade address on September 23rd of last year, all must work to guarantee open markets. Free trade is by definition fair trade. Since September, we've initiated investigations in one fair trade practices by other countries, making ours the first administration to initiate such investigations on its own. Today, we've cases underway concerning Korean barriers to foreign insurance companies, Brazilian restrictions on computer imports, Korean violations of intellectual property rights, and Japanese restrictions on imported tobacco products. As we've started our first investigation into Taiwan's foreign export performance requirements. In that same September speech, I just referred to I announced the formation of a strike force to identify unfair foreign trade practices and recommend strategies for combatting them. The strike force has been hard at work. We've initiated an anti dumping case against Japan for its practices involving exports of semiconductors. We've begun consultations with European governments on airbus sales, and we've proposed legislation to strengthen and expand the protection of intellectual property rights and adopted a formal policy in the enforcement of such rights. Third, we're working to negotiate new trade agreements that will expand world trade for the benefit of all nations. At the recent Tokyo summit, we and our allies once again affirmed our support for a new round of multilateral trade negotiations targeting the September GATT ministerial meeting for decisive progress. At the summit, we also agreed that this new round of talks should have a comprehensive agenda, including new topics of particular interest to the United States, such as services, intellectual property and investment. And still pursuing the goal of expanding trade. We've also begun to explore the advantages of negotiating a comprehensive free trade agreement with Canada, our largest trading partner. In trade relations with Japan, progress is again being made. When Prime Minister Nakasone and I met in April and again at the Tokyo summit, we agreed on the need to expand our trade through better market access. Indeed, I'm gratified at Japanese efforts to restructure their economy to expand domestic demand. Based on previous work, the Japanese are now committed to lowering Japan's barriers to imports of telecommunications equipment, medical equipment, forest products, pharmaceuticals and electronics. Like many of our trading partners, the Japanese are tough negotiators. I think many of you here know that firsthand. But we're determined to do all we can to lower trade barriers in Japan and throughout the world. These actions are all constructive steps aimed at expanding trade. And that's why I'm dismayed at protectionist legislation that is under consideration in the House of Representatives. It isn't a fair trade bill. It's a less trade bill. It will not open markets to U.S. products. It will close them. It will mandate that the United States violate many of the most basic rules of international trade, and it would expose our most productive farms and industries to retaliation by other nations. The creation of a strike force, the enforcement of our trade laws, vigorous trade talks with Japan and other nations, it is only right that we in government should make those efforts. But in truth, our nation would be nowhere without you. You who have shown such initiative in opening new international markets, your proof that American business has never been afraid to compete, that our business community is as innovative, efficient and competitive as any unearthed. And my friends for setting such high standards, I thank you. Now it's my privilege to sign the proclamation and then to ask Secretary Baldrige and Ambassador Yider to help me present the E and E-Star awards for excellence in exporting. So I'll take Tanya's hand. Thank you, Mr. President. I think I should mention that I don't know what's the matter with some of the rest of the audience audiences, but there's a bunch of us here that thought the cattle queen of Montana was a very good movie. And and further, maybe we ought to maybe we ought to rerun that by the Japanese and it might stimulate a little more beef buying over there. Well, first we'll start with the E awards. The first recipient is the automotive parts and accessories association Lanham, Maryland and accepting the award is Julian Seymour's president. The greater Los Angeles visitors and Convention Bureau Los Angeles, California is next accepting the award is Albert Dorskin, President of the Board of Directors, Mr. Dorskin. Custom electronics of Lenoxa, Kansas accepting the award is Ron Duncan, Vice President of Marketing, Macbeth, a division of Cole Morgan, New Berg, New York accepting the award is Dr. James G. Davidson President, Mayor Wildman Industries, Orangeburg, South Carolina accepting the award is Wolfgang Gourney, Executive Vice President, Paper Machine Recorporation Milwaukee, Wisconsin accepting the award is Donald Baumgartner, President, the Timberland Company, Portsmouth, New Hampshire accepting the award or Herman Schwartz and Sydney Schwartz co owners, export Port Authority Trading Company, the Port of New York and New Jersey accepting for export is Philip Coltenbocker, Chairman of the Board Board of Commissioners. And now, Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen, we will present the East Star Awards for continued excellence in export promotion. The first East Star recipient is colonial beef company, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, accepting the award is Lewis Waxman president. Dale electronics incorporated Columbus, Nebraska is our second recipient accepting the award is Carol Novicki, President. The first interstate bank of Denver, Colorado accepting the award is Elias Nunez, Vice President. Panel fold incorporated Miami, Florida accepting the award is Guy E. Dixon, Senior Chairman of the Board. Soon in products company St. Louis, Missouri accepting the award is Robert M. Soonan, President. Congratulations to all of you. We thank you for coming. Thank you, Mr. President. This concludes our ceremonies today. Oh, the Ferguson Industries. Yes, well, we're sorry, sir. That concludes the ceremonies. Thank you. Thank you. Okay, good.