TRADE MISSION NOTES:

Growing China, Vietnam economies promise great opportunities for Washington

Rogers Weed, Director, Washington State Department of Commerce

09/14/10

A nearly 100 person delegation led by the Governor is setting out for 10 days in China and Vietnam. I am very excited about this trip because its timing is so good. While the US and Washington state economies struggle to gain more momentum, China and Vietnam’s economies continue to grow at over 5% per year, with China expected to hit nearly 10% per year. And that growth is creating a large and growing middle class, particularly in China that are demanding world class products from around the globe.

About two weeks ago I was in Grays Harbor at the port where I saw an entire parking lot full of Jeep Cherokees bound for China. This kind of growth presents opportunities for our state on many levels. The first one is the chance to sell our world class “produced in Washington” products to those markets. But there’s also the chance to export products made all over the country using our outstanding ports and trade infrastructure. Finally, particularly China, is a ripe opportunity to attract investment into Washington state’s economy. All of these will be topics for the Governor and me during our visit and we intend to do everything in our power to develop these opportunities for our state. Stay tuned for more in the days and weeks ahead!