Why ROC: Hyde discusses Foreign-Trade Zone benefit
By: Mark Gruba
Updated: January 16, 2013
Genesee County Economic Development Center President and CEO Steve Hyde discussed the benefits associated with the county's recent designation as a Foreign-Trade Zone in Wednesday morning's Why ROC segment on News 8 at Sunrise.
Hyde said the Genesee County Foreign-Trade Zone designation will help existing companies create more jobs while saving money. In addition, it could help attract new businesses to a pair of shovel ready parks in the county, Apple Tree Acres and Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park.
The Foreign-Trade Zone, or FTZ, designation enables businesses to lower their costs on international transactions through duty deferral, duty exemption and inverted tariffs. Companies can delay payment of duties on goods that enter the U.S. market. They pay no duties or quota charges on imported goods which are later re-exported. Manufacturing-specific benefits, which are approved on a case-by-case basis by the FTZ board, can include the reduction of duties if a lower tariff rate applies to the finished product leaving the zone than the tariff rates that would have applied on foreign components.
Reductions in merchandise processing fees are an added benefit as well. Zone users are able to file a single customs entry per week rather than being forced to make multiple entries.
Hyde said the expectation is the FTZ designation will encourage more international trading in the county. The Rochester region accounts for 6.2 percent of all New York State exports, or $5.4 billion dollars annually. Some of the top trading partners include Canada, China, Mexico, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Monroe County also enjoys the FTZ designation.
Hyde said the Genesee County Foreign-Trade Zone designation will help existing companies create more jobs while saving money. In addition, it could help attract new businesses to a pair of shovel ready parks in the county, Apple Tree Acres and Genesee Valley Agri-Business Park.
The Foreign-Trade Zone, or FTZ, designation enables businesses to lower their costs on international transactions through duty deferral, duty exemption and inverted tariffs. Companies can delay payment of duties on goods that enter the U.S. market. They pay no duties or quota charges on imported goods which are later re-exported. Manufacturing-specific benefits, which are approved on a case-by-case basis by the FTZ board, can include the reduction of duties if a lower tariff rate applies to the finished product leaving the zone than the tariff rates that would have applied on foreign components.
Reductions in merchandise processing fees are an added benefit as well. Zone users are able to file a single customs entry per week rather than being forced to make multiple entries.
Hyde said the expectation is the FTZ designation will encourage more international trading in the county. The Rochester region accounts for 6.2 percent of all New York State exports, or $5.4 billion dollars annually. Some of the top trading partners include Canada, China, Mexico, Germany and the United Kingdom.
Monroe County also enjoys the FTZ designation.
