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Growth in global trade continued to crawl in July according to statistics compiled by the World Trade Organization. In the first seven months of 2013, the value of world merchandise exports rose 1.8 percent to $9.6 trillion dollars from the same period in 2012.
WTO's trade statistics from January to July show that the United States maintained its position as the second-largest exporter in the world with foreign sales hitting $918 billion, which was $8 billion more than during the first seven months of 2012.
China, the world's leading exporter, sold abroad $1.24 trillion worth of merchandise so far this year. Germany, the export engine of the Euro Area, was ranked the world's third-largest exporter, posting $841 billion in foreign sales in 2013. Despite a 12.8 percent decline in exports from a year ago, Japan sold abroad $415 billion of merchandise so far this year, keeping its place as the world's fourth-largest exporter.
At the state level, the latest tracking numbers on international trade show that foreign sales of made-in-Michigan goods rose $100.2 million, or...