Nike promises 10,000 new jobs if U.S. approves trade deal


President Obama visited Nike's headquarters in Beaverton, Oregon on Friday to promote the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement. The athletic giant has promised to create 10,000 jobs if the U.S. approves the accord, for which Obama is seeking "fast track" authority.
The president noted that the agreement would help American workers stay on top worldwide. "If we don't write the rules for trade around the world, guess what? China will," Obama said, adding that the Trans-Pacific Partnership is "the highest-standard, most progressive trade deal in history," because it includes provisions on the environment and preventing child labor.
Though Nike is known to rely on low-paid workers in Asia, Nike CEO Mike Parker said the agreement will help foster bringing more manufacturing jobs back to the U.S. "We believe agreements that encourage free and fair trade allow Nike to do what we do best — innovate, expand our businesses and drive economic growth," he said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Though some Democrats fear the deal would hurt American workers, Obama flatly refused that claim. "Some of my dearest friends are wrong," he said. "They're just wrong."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Meghan DeMaria is a staff writer at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked for USA Today and Marie Claire.
-
August 2 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include a tariff self-own, rough times at the Trump golf course, and more
-
5 inexcusably hilarious cartoons about Ghislaine Maxwell angling for a pardon
Cartoons Artists take on the circle of life, Ghislaine's Island, and more
-
Ozzy Osbourne obituary: heavy metal wildman and lovable reality TV dad
In the Spotlight For Osbourne, metal was 'not the music of hell but rather the music of Earth, not a fantasy but a survival guide'
-
Samsung to make Tesla chips in $16.5B deal
Speed Read Tesla has signed a deal to get its next-generation chips from Samsung
-
FCC greenlights $8B Paramount-Skydance merger
Speed Read The Federal Communications Commission will allow Paramount to merge with the Hollywood studio Skydance
-
Tesla reports plummeting profits
Speed Read The company may soon face more problems with the expiration of federal electric vehicle tax credits
-
Dollar faces historic slump as stocks hit new high
Speed Read While stocks have recovered post-Trump tariffs, the dollar has weakened more than 10% this year
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement