The Business Roundtable, a national association of the country’s largest companies, has released a study reporting that international trade supports one-fifth of all jobs in Maryland.

The study found that more than 740,000 Maryland jobs are represented by global trading, with nearly 236,000 jobs supported by imports and exports to Canada and Mexico, as of 2017. Maryland exported $3.5 billion worth of goods and services to Canada and Mexico that year, including significant amounts of office furniture and fixtures, products from purchased steel, and paperboard mill products.

While Maryland exported to 205 countries in 2017, the state’s largest export markets for services and goods besides Canada and Mexico included China, United Kingdom, Germany, and Japan. Among the top export categories are forestry products ($27 million), apparel ($12 million), furniture products (7.3 million), and metal ores ($128 million)—which has increased by nearly 240 percent over the past 12 years.

The Business Roundtable explains these jobs are not only at businesses that import and export goods, but also locations where companies and consumers spend their money. Thanks to trade’s high wages and low costs, surplus money can be spent on other things in the economy including construction costs, insurance, and personal and recreational services.

The study, compiled by Trade Partnership Worldwide, was prepared using the latest data from 2017. Learn more about the benefits of trade on Business Roundtable’s website.

Learn how Maryland is a gateway for international business