WED AM News: Talking Trade with Rohini Potluri, U.S. Bank; State sets another tourism record with $27B impact

June 10, 2026

— In the latest episode of “Talking Trade,” Rohini Potluri of U.S. Bank stresses the importance of effective planning for both importers and exporters amid currency volatility.

“Rather than trying to predict exactly where currencies are going, I think the bigger opportunity is preparedness,” she said, adding “currency markets can move quickly … companies that understand their exposures and have a disciplined approach to managing risk are often in a stronger position regardless of the market direction.”

Potluri, the bank’s vice president of foreign exchange, works with business customers across the Midwest who sell products globally. She helps them navigate international currency fluctuations and other changes.

“If a company agrees today to pay a supplier in Europe six months from now, the exchange rate might be very different when that payment comes due,” she said. “And my job is to help businesses navigate that uncertainty and create more credibility around their costs, cash flow and profitability.”

Potluri discusses the impact of tariffs on importer costs and the ripple effects of the war in Iran, as well as considerations for reaching foreign markets such as assessing and mitigating risk.

“How can the company better budget their dollar cost, given the market is moving every single day?’’ she said.

While geopolitical disruptions can lead to short-term volatility — such as tariffs or armed conflicts affecting trade flows and investor confidence — Potluri takes a broader view in describing how currency rates change over time.

“While tariffs and geopolitical events matter, central bank policy and economic fundamentals are often the larger drivers for longer-term currency trends,” she explained.

The discussion also explores the relative strength of the U.S. dollar given these fluctuations. It remains the benchmark currency for much of the world, Potluri said, adding she doesn’t expect that to change anytime soon.

“The U.S. dollar remains the world’s primary reserve currency and continues to play a dominant role in global trade and international payments,” she said. “While there is growing discussion around diversification and alternative payment systems, the dollar benefits from the size of the U.S. economy, deep capital markets and global liquidity.”

Talking Trade is hosted by E.M Wasylik Associates Managing Director Ken Wasylik and M.E. Dey & Co. President and Managing Director Sandi Siegel and sponsored by the Dairy Farmers of Wisconsin, Carroll University and Michael Best Strategies.

Watch the full episode here.

“Talking Trade” is now available in audio form on Apple Podcasts and Google Podcasts. Subscribe and find more episodes here.

— The state’s tourism industry generated a record $27 billion in economic impact last year, topping the previous record of $25.8 billion that was set in 2024.

It was the fourth straight year the tourism industry has set a record for economic impact, Gov. Tony Evers announced yesterday.

“Wisconsin’s tourism industry isn’t just growing, it’s booming,” Evers said in a statement.

The governor announced:

Wisconsin saw 117.9 million visitors in 2025, an increase of 3.5 million. That topped the previous record of 114.4 million.
The industry generated a record $1.7 billion in state and local revenue.
The industry supported more than 183,000 full-time and part-time jobs.

See the release.

— Fifty-six percent of respondents to the latest WMC survey said the state is headed in the wrong direction.

Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce yesterday issued its summer 2026 Wisconsin Employer Survey results focused on taxes in the state.

When asked how state and local taxes in Wisconsin impact their company’s ability to compete, 6% of respondents said they significantly weaken it while 45% said they somewhat weaken it. Another 6% said they somewhat strengthen it, 1% said they significantly strengthen it and 43% said there’s no meaningful impact or they’re not sure.

“It’s no wonder employers say Wisconsin is headed the wrong way: we’re already among the highest-taxed states in the nation, with top-10 individual and property tax burdens and a top-12 corporate tax burden,” WMC President and CEO Kurt Bauer said in the report.

Over the last 12 months, 13% of respondents said their property tax bill for business or commercial property has increased significantly while 58% said it has increased modestly. Another 17% said it has stayed the same while just 1% said it has decreased. Eleven percent said the question wasn’t applicable to them.

Meanwhile, 46% of respondents strongly support eliminating the state’s personal income tax, 25% somewhat support it, and 11% neither support nor oppose the move. Nine percent somewhat oppose doing so, 5% strongly oppose the idea and 4% said they weren’t sure.

The survey, which includes both online and traditional mail, included 196 employers that WMC says make up a representative sample of its membership and the state’s business community. It was conducted May 6-29.

See the full results.

— Milwaukee’s commissioner of city development, Lafayette Crump, says TIF financing is enabling the expansion of housing stock in the area.

Speaking yesterday during a meeting of the Milwaukee Rotary Club, Crump said tax incremental financing is being deployed across Wisconsin’s largest city.

This public financing tool is used by the city to expand its tax base by investing in infrastructure and development costs for real estate projects in a defined area, according to an overview from a member of the Milwaukee Common Council.

Over the past year, the city has seen five new affordable housing developments supported with TIF financing, Crump said. That includes rental options and an initiative to drive home ownership across various neighborhoods in the city.

Those five developments will create nearly 900 housing units, leveraging $300 million in private capital along with $14 million in TIF financing, according to Crump. He said much of that private support would only have been possible with the addition of TIF financing, noting “that’s a ratio we’re happy to have anytime.”

Within the next year or two, six additional TIF developments will be coming together in Milwaukee, yielding 1,700 new housing units backed by $50 million in TIF financing and nearly $500 million in private investment.

“Until all of our residents have access to stable and safe places to call home, we will still have work to do,” Crump said.

— Seven small businesses in the state are getting up to $675,000 in matching grant funding from the SBIR Advance program.

The program supports companies with projects in the federal Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer programs. Six of the recipients are getting up to $100,000 match while one is getting up to $75,000, though the announcement didn’t note which is receiving the lower amount.

Recipients include:

*BiaCure Therapies, a Pewaukee-based company developing a non-invasive new therapy for treating a common but painful nail fungus.

*Calimetrix in Madison, which provides precise reference standards for quality assurance in medical imaging studies, aimed at improving confidence in results and reducing the rate of undetected problems.

*Groupware Technologies, based in Wauwatosa. The company’s platform is meant to help state and local government agencies maintain elements of a federal HIV/AIDS program.

*Regenerative Medical Solutions, a Madison business seeking a cure for diabetes using stem cell therapy, based on UW research.

*Sativa Building Systems in Wittenberg, which makes hemp-based building materials for the construction industry.

*Steam Instruments in Madison, a startup developing advanced technical analysis tools.

*Varizymes Corporation, a Middleton-based biotechnology firm offering enzymes and diagnostic kits.

See the release.

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