For the 11th year in a row, the MAI team of industry specialists including Bruce MacLellan, Diane Alleva Caceres, Crystal Porter, Doug Wood and Sheillach McDougall designed and implemented a successful B2B component of the Southeastern United States//Canadian Province Alliance conference in Mobile, AL 3-5 June 2018 hosted by Alabama’s Department of Commerce. Over 70 companies – from large anchor companies like Mercedes Benz, Airbus and Austal t0 many SMES – met one-one-one to discuss a variety of potential business relationships from R&D partnerships and supply chain development to joint ventures and sales and distribution. Key industries included automotive, aerospace, shipbuilding, energy and information communications technologies. The conference and B2B meetings yielded signed contracts and additional opportunities under negotiation. Similar to last year, firms continued to expand their cross-border networks and market intelligence within the context of potential changes in the NAFTA agreement.

MAI’s Founder and CEO, Dr. Diane Alleva Cáceres moderated the Heads of Delegation Working Session and was a panelist on, “A Conversation on Trade and Investment: New Trends in Global Trade and Investment Flows and Policies between Canada and the Southeastern United States”, which was very well received.