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City Economy Intelligence COVID-19 Responses and Recovery Series

Note 4 – Trade and InvestmentThe Business of Cities

For Glasgow City Council and Glasgow Chamber of Commerce

IntroductionIn the 4 months since Covid-19 caused a lockdown of urban economies in the UK, Europe and worldwide, the pandemic has radically interrupted and disrupted the economic fabric of city regions. 

There are already clear signs that the changes it has brought about is altering, in the short, medium and longer term, the industry mix and jobs base that cities will host. This will have implications for Glasgow’s economy for years to come.

Huge volatility in demand for city systems and services has required urgent responses in terms of management, co-ordination and re-investment. Patterns of Real Estate demand and land use are being disrupted as work-life-play balance has been reconfigured. Cities are also recognised that the character of competition with other cities for contested opportunities is now set to change, with particular needs to reset and re-focus the city-region narrative.

How cities are reacting and responding is the subject of this paper series.

The effects of the immediate crisis will play out over the next 2 years. The recession will likely be severe, but it is important to know where Glasgow wants to be after the recession, so that it can manage the transition during the recession.

For example, it is likely that Glasgow will have clear choices about what role it wishes to play in: 

1. Re-localisation – the opportunities amid changes to supply chains, reshoring, industrial design, and advanced manufacturing.

2. Digitisation – taking advantage of the massive acceleration of digitisation, ‘as a service’ platforms, and new business models.

3. Health – and how to adapt to the new global agenda on health care, healthy living, medicine, and life sciences.

4. Climate – demonstrating the renewed commitment on climate change and circularity, and the link between planetary health and human health

5. The blended city: with its changed models for real estate, mobility, public spaces, and the new metropolitan space.

This note reviews the visible and proactive responses so far in city regions worldwide to Covid-19, focusing in particular (but not only) on cities with broadly comparable assets and dynamics to Glasgow.  Many cities and city regions have been responding in multiple domains and are already revisiting their medium-term economic strategy and desired industry mix. It focuses on policies and approaches developed by cities, local governments and metropolitan authorities, rather than higher level governments.

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This note is not intended to be comprehensive in coverage or to distinguish precisely which priorities are most pertinent to Glasgow over the next 6-12 months. It is instead designed to provide insight and resources for policymakers in Glasgow who are responding to protect, adapt and enhance the city and regional economy over the ‘pre vaccine’ and ‘post vaccine’ horizon.

This review is informed by two key sources of data, analysis, insight and commentary:

1. Research of the Top 100 Global City Regions, including their government and business leadership reports, discussion papers, official press releases, and strategy and policy meetings

2. Global Studies and Reports of Covid responses prepared by organisations such as Addleshaw Goddard, Blavatnik School of Government, Brookings Institution, Canadian Urban Institute, IMF, JLL, McKinsey & Company, Munk School of Global Affairs, NewCities, OECD, Trinity Research in Social Sciences, ULI, UNCTAD, World Bank, World Built Environment Forum and World Economic Forum.

This is an unusual crisis in that more cities than ever are simultaneously enduring it and experimenting with solutions. 

The urgency for Glasgow, even relative to the global picture, is very clear. Indicative data appears to reflect Glasgow’s role as a regional services centre, and its higher reliance on activities such as conferences, events, entertainment and higher education that have been badly disrupted. It therefore requires a very deliberate and co-ordinated set of responses, informed where possible by international practice.

Trade and InvestmentThe impact of Covid-19 on global trade and investment has been severe and will endure. The World Trade Organisation anticipates that world trade will shrink by between 13% and 32% in 2020, and a possible 2021 recovery will be highly dependent on the duration of uncertainty and the effectiveness of policy responses. Latest predictions for European-level trade forecast a €240 to 285 billion decline in extra-EU imports. Steeper declines are forecast in more globalised city regions with high concentrations of industries with complex value chains such as electronics and automotive products (see below).

Some of Glasgow’s most prominent industries are witnessing a sharp and prolonged decline in traded activity and investment. This requires both mitigation and adjustments to achieve an overall mix capable of sustaining a vibrant metropolitan economy.

Figure 1: Forecast impact on global trade

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Source: World Trade Organisation.

On the one hand, Glasgow’s large professional services core of financial and business services, and its relatively high share of higher education, tourism and creative industries jobs, expose the city region to trade and investment shocks, relative to other cities. But on the other hand, high demand areas where Glasgow has a specialisation advantage - cleantech, advanced manufacturing, and life sciences - are an opportunity to drive exports and inward investment. Protecting, consolidating and re-communicating Glasgow’s strengths in these core areas may therefore become a more urgent imperative for city leaders and institutions in the coming months.

Figure 2: Anticipated industry outcomes and their dependency on crisis duration

Source: The Business of Cities Research. *Bold and underlined = evident specialisations for Glasgow.

FDI levels are also expected to be badly hit by the pandemic. Even under the most optimistic scenarios, where public health interventions and economic support policies are sound, FDI flows are expected to fall by more than 30% in 2020. However, Covid-19 is anticipated to impact on investors and economies differently, depending on national and regional context and differing FDI motivations. Glasgow’s relatively strong record of

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attracting FDI in knowledge-seeking sectors such as healthcare and ICT, and projected growth in FDI in these sectors, may mean that Glasgow’s FDI levels can prove more resilient than some of its peer city regions.

The latest evidence also suggests that Glasgow may be somewhat insulated from economic shocks relating to declines in real estate investment. Latest market research anticipates that relative to other UK and European cities, Glasgow will benefit from its low vacancy rate and lack of grade A stock and speculative construction, which may help to protect against economic shocks compared to previous downturns where oversupply was more prevalent. A common sentiment is that Glasgow will continue to offer considerable value as a real estate investment proposition relative to other cities and will retain its appeal to those seeking attractive returns. Efforts to closely monitor and communicate these advantages across the region, including within city leadership, the Chamber of Commerce and other institutions charged with investment promotion, may be relevant in the months ahead.

Finally, Covid-19 has fuelled debate about the potential re-localisation of supply chains to city regions. Many cities are observing the possible positive climatic impacts of having more localised supply chains and the opportunity to de-risk and raise flexibility by bringing production closer to shore. Digitisation of supply chains is also viewed to be increasingly likely, with many cities and regions of Glasgow’s size and calibre beginning to use data, cloud computing, IoT and blockchain technologies to build more resilient supply chain systems, better understand customers, and more efficiently distribute products.

Amid high levels of uncertainty regarding Covid-19’s impact on trade and investment levels, there are broadly speaking three different approaches that city and metropolitan level governments, business and civic groups, and key institutions located within cities, have been taking. These include:

1. Chambers of Commerce and Investment Agencies communicating openness to investment and enhancing support for trading firms through better transparency, more online support to companies looking to trade overseas, and digitising trade missions and networking events

2. City leaders and industry groups working together to keep supply chains flowing, especially for essential goods, by investing in resilience and data capacity.

3. Boost confidence in trade and investability by prioritising trade certification schemes that highlight city-level health and efficiency.

In this note, we observe these city and metropolitan-level policy response in turn:

Investment propositions Supply chain resilience Trade certification

In each section, we note potential implications for Glasgow and which institutions have led in implementing the initiative, from formal city and metropolitan level governments, through to Chambers of Commerce and Investment Agencies, to B2B services and platforms, business leadership groups, and private sector entities.

Cities featured in Note 4

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1. Investment PropositionsAround the world, cities of Glasgow’s size and calibre have undertaken efforts to strengthen their regional investment propositions amid concerns about the ability of existing firms to trade internationally, and about inward investment flows. City and regional governments, Chambers of Commerce, Investment Agencies, and B2B platforms are in many cities working together to communicate to investors and to ensure that companies can access the investment they need to serve growth and internationalisation.

Within this section, we review how cities of relevance to Glasgow are:

Re-organising and re-prioritising communication with potential investors through more frequent, multichannel communication and new communications campaigns

Supporting business’ ability to trade externally by digitising investor visits, connecting SMEs to virtual trade missions, and forming new partnerships

Creating new online portals for updates and information to enable businesses to continue trading, including through the provision of real-time digital resources

Prioritising regional collaboration and regional governance adjustments, in order to strengthen joint promotion

Undertaking surveys to diagnose persistent issues and using results to launch new strategies focusing on specific areas

Re-organising and re-prioritising communication with potential investors.The unique circumstances posed by the current crisis have led city governments, business associations and Chambers of Commerce alike to rethink the efficiency and frequency of their communications and outreach. As well as the need to provide up-to-date information on public health issues, Covid-19 has also underlined the need for clear communications regarding the economic situation so that businesses can rapidly evolve and continue to attract much-needed investment. In many cities of Glasgow’s size, communications have been re-organised and re-prioritised to make information about investment more frequent and available through multiple channels, thus maximising potential investment exposure.

Many cities’ Marketing and Investment Promotion Agencies are also developing fresh communications campaigns in order to encourage investment both during and after the crisis, and working with regional institutions such as airports to align positioning efforts region-wide. In cities of Glasgow’s size and specialisation, these campaigns tend to look to promote regions’ manufacturing resilience as well as the strategic advantages for businesses of investing there. The coming months may see more examples of cities updating their communications campaigns to focus on edges that are in high demand as a result of the crisis, for example in cleantech, fintech, advanced manufacturing and life sciences – all areas where Glasgow currently holds specialisation advantages.

Key interventions include:

Increasing the frequency of communications. For example, in the Pittsburgh region, the Allegheny Conference on Community Development has stepped up the frequency of its communications with members and partners, informing twice weekly on its ongoing response for economic development.1

Shifting to a more multi-channel approach. The Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber has been expanding its online engagement through multi-channel communications: it has created a Facebook group page with over 600 members that informs investors about changes to businesses and resources available and has established a “Chamber presents” Facebook video series where members present a daily theme such as Finance & Law or Health & Wellness. The Chamber

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also holds two virtual meetings a week in order to maximise investment exposure.2

Launching new communications campaigns. For example:o In Milan, the promotion agency of the city, Milano&Partners, has

established the YesMilano communication campaign with the slogan “A new start. One step at a time”. Promoted by the Municipality of Milan and the city’s Chamber of Commerce, and supported by SEA Milan airports, the campaign looks to harness the region’s manufacturing resilience to undergo a strong economic recovery. The region’s airports themselves have been key in fostering the recovery of operations and in predicting the nature of structural changes caused by the crisis, as well as in collaborating with Milano&Partners to promote the region’s potential.

o In Bogotá, the city’s Board of Marketing has developed a publicity campaign using the hashtags #SeeYouInBogota and #EnBogotáNosVemos to highlight the city’s work in anticipation of the return of foreign tourists and investors. The campaign is designed to present Bogotá as a city in which international investors can find a wide variety of talent, a strategic geographical location, and the perfect sized market for developing new businesses.

Digitising investor visits, connecting SMEs to virtual trade missions and networking events and forming new partnershipsMany cities’ business leadership organisations and Chambers of Commerce have announced that planned trade missions and networking events are to be transitioned to a virtual format to avoid cancellation, and some are planning dedicated virtual trade missions with cities in other parts of the world to connect up SMEs with external trading opportunities. There is already a large body of evidence to suggest that such events allow cities to exchange ideas about the ways in which emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things can provide solutions for economic recovery, act to support networking between suppliers and buyers and enable businesses to access much-needed investment.

Virtual trade missions, partnerships and investor visits may be relevant to the reinvestment and adoption of the ‘enabling technologies’ necessary to underpin growth in sectors likely to become more prominent as the crisis unfolds, such as cleantech, fintech, advanced manufacturing and life sciences.

Key interventions include:

Highly curated virtual trade missions. For example:o London & Partners’ International Business Programme has launched a

series of virtual trade missions, the first of which was with New York. 12 pioneering companies in the HR technology sector discussed possible business opportunities with companies in New York that are interested in purchasing new solutions for their HR departments. The virtual trade mission recognises the increased importance in the current climate for HR professionals to keep up to date with training services, employee engagement and wellness tools, and employee HR platforms.3

o An Edinburgh-Philadelphia trade mission led by the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce was transferred to an online format. Online video sessions from local government departments were followed by one-to-one virtual B2B meetings between organisations in Edinburgh and Philadelphia. Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce is considering whether further trade missions due to take place this year can also be done remotely.4

o The Province of Ontario organised a virtual trade mission to India on the theme of artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things with a view to

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help businesses in Ontario reboot their exports and introduce their services to Indian system integrators, corporate organisations and government officials. The mission focused on the effects of COVID-19 on the ICT and infrastructure sectors and smart city projects in India and how Ontario companies can navigate the resulting situation; advice on the ways in which Ontario exporters of AI and IoT services can gain access to the Indian market; and the opportunities to match up Indian buyers and Ontario sellers of AI and IoT services.5

Hosting online networking events. For example, the Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber holds a variety of online events such as weekly virtual networking events and has plans to hold a virtual job fair in collaboration with six other organisations.6

Launching new trade partnerships. For example, a new West Midlands Indian Partnership (WMIP) led by the West Midlands Growth Company has been established to foster UK-India relations and increase trade, investment and tourism between the West Midlands and India. In an effort to build resilient, productive economies against the backdrop of the pandemic, the partnership will strengthen networks, encourage collaboration in academia, and promote airline connectivity. Businesses will be able to collaborate on a variety of established and emerging technologies while the partnership should particularly benefit SMEs as they are given the chance to develop more connected supply chains and scale through new commercial partnerships.7

Providing regular updates and information through online portals and other meansRemote working and the inability to hold in-person meetings have led city governments and business associations to make large segments of their business support packages available in a digital format. This includes publishing checklists of good practices to get businesses back up and running as well as collections of resources to help businesses to receive financial support and encourage trade and investment. In many cities with a comparable business base to Glasgow, programmes of online webinars and advice sessions are also being made available to provide the support businesses require to continue to trade externally.

In some cities, business associations, B2B service providers and Chambers of Commerce have also begun partnering with software companies to create real-time digital resources aimed at businesses, such as chatbots and online toolkits. These initiatives aim to provide businesses with instantaneous support and are focused on providing resources for business recovery, for instance on how to continue trading internationally.

Key interventions undertaken by Chambers of Commerce and Investment Promotion Agencies that are of relevance for Glasgow include:

Hosting online briefing calls and webinars. For example:o The Greater Washington Board of Trade is hosting online briefing calls with

regional experts on topics such as ‘Getting the Region to Fiscal, Economic, and Public Health’ and ‘Regional Business Conditions and Long-term Recovery’, and has also moved their executive meal series online, connecting business leaders in a relaxed environment on Zoom and providing meals from a catering partner.8

o Québec International (QI), in collaboration with the Quebec Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCIQ) and the Quebec Young Chamber of Commerce, has launched a series of webinars to discuss the implications of measures implemented by municipal, provincial and federal governments and stimulus programmes on the ability of companies based within the city to continue to attract investment and trade externally. As

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part of the series, local businesspeople have had the opportunity to ask questions to politicians including the Minister for Regional Economic Development about issues surrounding trade and investment.9

Consolidating guidance into easy-to-use formats. For example: o The Austin Chamber of Commerce has produced a detailed set of

guidelines for businesses in the form of an easy-to-understand checklist. Covering topics from measures to take when holding meetings to how to limit travel but continue to engage with external partners and clients, the guidelines outline steps to avoid the key risks of coronavirus in a business context. It also includes a FAQ-style section relating to the most common queries and concerns relating to how to trade internationally and maintain an income stream.10

o The City of Helsinki has established an enhanced information service to support businesses by improving their general understanding of the situation as well as devising concrete actions to immediately help business owners in distress. In addition, the City has produced an updated list of entrepreneurial support services so that entrepreneurs can find the support their local businesses require.11

Online platforms and consultations. For example:o Barcelona City Council’s Local Development Agency, Barcelona Activa, is

offering online guidance appointments for businesses in the process of developing international export operations. The service includes individual diagnostics and assessment in order to identify the best strategy to undertake for businesses to access international markets as well as specific training programmes.12

o The Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce’s International Affairs team (l’équipe des Affaires Internationales) is helping businesses to maintain their commercial links abroad. The team offers various forms of support including information on the different restrictions put in place by different countries, a platform for online consultations, and an agenda of digital activities related to the different geographical markets around the world in order to support businesses in maintaining active relationships with external partners and suppliers.13

Real time digital resources for businesses. For example:o In Espoo, Finland, Business Espoo is partnering with software company

GetJenny Oy to test a chatbot for businesses to ask questions regarding international trade, training, and employment. Currently available only in Finnish, an English language version will be soon available and the service will run until the end of August 2020.14

o The Edmonton Chamber of Commerce has created an online toolkit to help businesses flexibly relaunch their operations in new conditions. The toolkit covers four steps detailing what steps and tips to take into account: creating a back-to-work task force; preparing workspaces; preparing employees; and preparing to do business.15

o In Indianapolis, Indy Chamber has developed a Rapid Response Hub offering real-time information and links to existing resources in order to help businesses to negotiate the uncertain economic context caused by the crisis. The Chamber also offers free one-on-one business coaching from experts as well as access to current and anticipated loan capital programmes to guide local entrepreneurs and small business owners through the pandemic.16

Enhanced citywide collaboration and city governance adjustments

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In many cities of Glasgow’s size and calibre, Chambers of Commerce are working with other nearby Chambers or formal city government departments to encourage stronger regional collaboration and create a more powerful voice for businesses when lobbying higher-level governments. Partnerships are also being forged in order to synthesise the wealth of information businesses receive as well as to better coordinate business recovery efforts region-wide and strengthen joint promotion.

Key interventions observed so far include:

Pushes for enhanced regional collaboration between business associations. For example, Pittsburgh North Regional Chamber has partnered with six other organisations in the region, including the Beaver County Chamber of Commerce and Butler County, to create the Tri-County Growth Collaborative, acting as one single business voice for the region. Together they hope to better aid recovery efforts in different industries such as through working groups for each affected industry and synthesising information available to businesses.17

Strengthened collaboration among city departments. For example, the Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce COVID recovery task force is pushing for wider communication and exchange with the Chicago Transport Authority and Metra (the commuter rail system) with regard to what steps they are taking to sanitise their systems. It is hoped that widespread knowledge among the business community of such practices will encourage businesses to restart their services sooner.18

Surveys among local businesses to help adapt city-region response and forge new strategies to address specific trade and investment issuesBusiness associations, investment agencies and Chambers of Commerce have played a key role in rapidly surveying local companies and business leaders to assess their impressions of the effect of the crisis on their business, the ways they are overcoming certain challenges, and how they could be supported more effectively in regards to trading externally. By aggregating sentiment city regions have been able to evaluate and better tailor their support to businesses’ specific needs while also sharpening the advocacy to higher-level governments. In some cases, surveys have also underpinned the development of new city-wide strategies for specific business problems arising from the economic crisis, such as talent attraction and retention and redistribution of resources and labour to areas of need.

Examples of cities and city regions moving quickly include:

The Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce, which undertook a survey on the impact of Covid-19 on small businesses in the region and used the results to advocate for additional federal grants and loan programs as well as state and local regulatory relief for businesses in order to increase cash flow.19

The Denver Metro Chamber of Commerce, which used a survey of more than 400 businesses to establish four new priorities for trade and investment: extending tax deadlines, increasing access to capital, expanding legal protections, and limiting new burdens or cost.20

ProColombia and Invest in Bogota, in collaboration with a collection of Regional Investment Promotion Agencies, who recently performed a survey of 229 foreign companies in Colombia in order to discover how companies are viewing the crisis. The results have enabled Bogota to double down on strategies to retaining foreign companies by identifying the key difficulties, and to spread a more coherent and

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integrated message about support for foreign investors and the benefits they can bring to cities in a time of crisis.21

Examples of strategies include those specifically targeting:

Retention of existing companies. For example, Invest Stockholm has produced a guide focused on attracting and retaining international talent in times of digitisation and pandemic. It helps international companies with their pandemic-related challenges and outlines ways to attract new talent as the city starts to see renewed interest from new investors and companies.22

Connecting displaced workers to jobs. For instance, the Dallas Regional Chamber’s talent attraction campaign “Say Yes to Dallas” is partnering with organisations across North Texas to connect workers displaced by COVID-19 with organisations hiring significant numbers of employees. The Chamber publishes job openings in essential sectors such as hospitals, pharmacies, food and warehouse work.23

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2. Supply Chain ResilienceMany commentators have highlighted how small and medium-sized city regions, particularly non-capital cities, will face new imperatives to digitise supply chains and use more data-driven methods to better understand customers, find more efficient ways to distribute products and, ultimately, enhance resilience. For cities with similar characteristics to Glasgow, analysts have noted opportunities for SMEs in manufacturing and consumer goods sectors in particular to join regional supply chains of larger companies in the coming months.

We may also see cities and regions taking the lead on advising businesses about how to develop resilient product processes through for example adoption of buffer stocks and standardised inputs, and formal resilience monitoring. Some cities have already demonstrated leadership on centralising and digitising supply chains and keeping supply chains open through commitment to maintaining port operations. 

Key interventions observed so far and which are of relevance for Glasgow include:

Centralising networks in response to Covid-19 in order to improve efficiency. For example, the Virginia Supply Chain Initiative (VSCI) has been created to act as a centralised supply chain clearinghouse for businesses and local governments responding to the Covid-19 crisis. By creating a network of private-sector supply chain providers from warehousing, distribution, contract packaging etc., the area can better address critical needs.24

Encouraging investments in digital supply chains to enhance economic resilience. For example, Singapore is pushing to digitise sector-specific and nationally strategic supply chains as much as possible, thus providing the flexibility and agility required to overcome further disruptions. This will include technologies such as 3D printing to perform some manufacturing locally. In addition, Robotic Process Automation will allow robots to judge what products need to be made and where, in accordance with data patterns by using radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags to track the location of products around the world and then redirect the goods depending on sudden changes in demand.25

Launching local government matchmaking services to facilitate companies with supply chain relationships. For example, the Michigan Economic Development Corporation’s “Pure Michigan Business Connect” programme is expanding its free, online procurement platform to include donations from suppliers that can fulfil health and human service needs in many product and service categories. The platform provides access to businesses in Michigan that provide supplies such as PPE, medical devices and cleaning equipment. It is hoped that a wide array of organisations could benefit from the move including childcare facilities, education institutions and food distribution centres.26

Knowledge sharing to keep ports open. Over 50 city regions have already adapted their port protocols in line with higher tier of government, including through the establishment of “green lanes” to accelerate the processing of cargo shipments and minimising the need for physical interaction by digitising import and export processes. 20 member ports of the Port Authorities Roundtable met in April to show their commitment to ensuring ports stay open during the crisis - including the Port of Barcelona, Port of Seattle and the Guangzhou Port Authority. This has set in motion collaboration between port authorities to exchange best practices in order to prevent their ports being disrupted. This includes on measures used to assist shore personnel and ship crew as well as the safe handling of cargo.27

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3. Trade CertificationOne approach that some city governments and Investment Agencies are taking to enhance investor and business confidence is the adoption of trade certification schemes. Health and trade certification can help to incentivise local investment, rebuild confidence among potential investors, and facilitate movement of goods and people within and between city regions. For medium-sized city-regions such as Glasgow, trade certification schemes are seen as important for talent mobility, business confidence, and creditworthiness. 

Key interventions include:

Certification schemes to demonstrate commitment to safety and provision of healthy working environments. For example, the city of Toronto’s Certificate of Recognition Program (COR) is a comprehensive health and safety audit tool with an accredited certification programme. Its key value lies not only in ensuring health and safety programmes in the midst of the pandemic, but also driving the need for integrating safety into the overall business processes and planning of contractors.28

Compliance with Global Advisory Certification Schemes. For example, the city of Dallas has joined the Global Biorisk Advisory Council’s accreditation program. This includes 4-6 weeks of training, as well as certification that the city has demonstrated compliance with the program’s 20 health elements, covering cleaning, disinfecting and infectious disease prevention. GBAC’s program had previously been restricted to individual private facilities, but has expanded to help cities open up to investment in the wake of the pandemic.29

Creation of health charters to encourage investment. For example, the Lille Métropole attractiveness agency, ‘Hello Lille’, has partnered with Lille Pasteur Institute to produce a health charter signed by 200 organisations in the culture and tourism industry. The charter consists of 10 basic commitments relating to topics such as disinfection practices and measures to deal with heatwaves. Organisations can demonstrate their commitment through a logo in their communication tools. Overall, it is hoped the charter will highlight Lille as a safe tourist, investment and trade destination, with a reassuring shared commitment to high standards.30

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References

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1 https://www.alleghenyconference.org/covid-19-allegheny-conference-updates/2 https://www.pghnorthchamber.com/covid-19-resources/; https://www.pghnorthchamber.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/COVID19_Renewal-Letter.pdf3 https://www.finextra.com/pressarticle/82495/london-launches-first-ever-virtual-trade-mission-to-new-york4 https://www.insider.co.uk/news/edinburgh-trade-mission-city-goes-217363345 https://www.advantagebrantford.ca/en/ontario-india-ict-trade-and-investment.aspx6 https://www.pghnorthchamber.com/covid-19-resources/; https://www.pghnorthchamber.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/COVID19_Renewal-Letter.pdf7 https://justentrepreneurs.co.uk/news-1/new-west-midlands-india-partnership-launches-to-attract-investment-jobs-and-visitors-to-region8 https://www.bot.org/covid-19/9 https://www.quebecinternational.ca/en/news/covid-19-webinars-in-response-to-business-issues-and-challenges10 https://cdn1.austinchamber.com/marketing/documents/Austin-Chamber-of-Commerce-COVID-19-Guidelines-SHARED.pdf?mtime=20200323114957&_ga=2.256295112.298471088.1594024214-1530596862.159402421411 https://www.hel.fi/uutiset/en/kaupunginkanslia/helsinki-takes-opening-steps-to-support-businesses-hit-by-coronavirus12 https://empreses.barcelonactiva.cat/es_ES/web/es/internacionalitzacio-i-tramits-de-comerc-exterior13 cc.lu/fr/covid19/go-international/accueil/14 https://cities-today.com/espoo-trials-multilingual-smartbot-for-coronavirus-advice/ ; https://www.espoo.fi/en-US/City_of_Espoo/Information_about_Espoo/International_Espoo/Hello_Espoo/Espoo_to_test_a_chatbot_in_business_serv(175331)15 https://www.edmontonchamber.com/relaunch/16 https://citybase-cms-prod.s3.amazonaws.com/d7c1bd34d338420a96c464109576fcb7.pdf17 https://www.pghnorthchamber.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/COVID19_Renewal-Letter.pdf ; https://www.pghnorthchamber.com/covid-19-resources/18 https://www.chicagobusiness.com/greg-hinz-politics/biz-chiefs-draw-formula-reopening-chicagos-economy19 https://www.chicagolandchamber.org/chamber-news/results-covid-19-business-impact-survey/20 https://denverchamber.org/2020/05/11/what-you-said-you-need-right-now/21 https://en.investinbogota.org/news/colombia-investment-destination22 https://www.investstockholm.com/news/new-report-attracting-and-retain-international-talent-in-times-of-digitisation-and-pandemic/ ; https://www.investstockholm.com/globalassets/documents/growth-through-innovation-and-people.-talent-attraction-in-times-of-digitisation-and-pandemic...pdf23 https://sayyestodallas.com/jobs/displaced-workers/24 https://vasupplychain.com/25 http://supplychainasia.org/singapores-businesses-must-take-lead-supply-chain-transformation-wake-covid-19/26 http://www.berkleymich.org/news_detail_T7_R297.php27 https://www.maritime-executive.com/article/twenty-port-authorities-sign-covid-19-declaration28 https://www.toronto.ca/business-economy/doing-business-with-the-city/understanding-the-procurement-process/certificate-of-recognition-program/#:~:text=Certificate%20of%20Recognition%20(CORTM)%20is%20a%20comprehensive%20health%20and,and%20Safety%20Association%20(IHSA).29 https://www.visitdallas.com/meeting-planners/blog/2020/gbac-star-accreditation.html ; https://www.tsnn.com/news/first-facilities-cities-earn-gbac-star-accreditation-month30 https://covidnews.eurocities.eu/2020/06/26/lille-metropole-health-charter-to-reassure-tourists/