Gov. Gregoire, delegation wrap up trade mission

For Immediate Release: September 27, 2005

OLYMPIA - Sept. 27, 2005 - In the final two days of her 11-day trade mission to Japan and China, Gov. Christine Gregoire and members of her trade delegation had a packed schedule that included a ride and presentation on Shanghai's magnetic levitation train; briefings on U.S. - China business relations; meetings with World Expo 2010 planners and the Mayor of Shanghai; a supermarket promotion of Washington agricultural products; two business agreement ceremonies marking new Washington State-China partnerships; and a reception for Shanghai dignitaries.

"Just as our other stops were, this leg of our mission has been very productive," said Gov. Gregoire. "Shanghai is a dynamic city experiencing explosive growth and there is huge potential for us to further our own economic and educational goals by developing ties with Chinese business and academic leaders in the Shanghai region."

On Sunday, after traveling from Beijing to Shanghai, the governor and her delegation rode the new magnetic levitation rail line from Pudong Airport into Shanghai. It was a seven-minute trip that would have taken about 45 minutes by taxi or bus. Following the ride, the general manager of the Shanghai Maglev Transportation Development Company, Mr. Song Xiao Jun, provided a special presentation for the governor and members of the delegation. The Maglev, as it's known, reaches top speeds of 500 kilometers per hour. It can accommodate 100,000 riders a day and requires one-tenth of the staffing of ordinary rail.

On Monday, the delegation began a busy day in Shanghai with a briefing by U.S. Consul General Kenneth Farrett and members of the U.S. Consulate staff. They described a rapidly expanding city with a population of about 17 million people, nearly three times that of Washington State. There are about 20,000 Americans living in the Shanghai area and about 4,000 U.S. companies doing business in the region.

Dr. Ira Kasoff, Principal Commercial Officer, cited a survey indicating that more than 62 percent of those companies are located in China to serve the Chinese market. Their expansion in China is creating U.S. jobs as opposed to outsourcing them. 68 percent of companies say they are profitable doing business in Shanghai.

After the general session, agriculture sector delegates met with Ralph Bean, Deputy Director of the Agriculture Trade Office, for a detailed briefing on agricultural trade with China. "Ralph was incredibly helpful," said Valoria Loveland, Director of the Washington State Department of Agriculture. "It was one of the best briefings we've had and particularly helpful to our fruit and vegetable growers."

Later in the morning, the governor visited the Washington State Trade Office then met with Mr. Huang Yaocheng, Deputy Director General of the Shanghai World Expo, which is expected to draw 70 million visitors when it opens in 2010.

Resettling residents and building the downtown Shanghai Expo site is a major undertaking. The city has allocated a budget of $3.6 billion for Expo site construction. It is expected that an additional $30 to 60 billion will be spent on Expo-related infrastructure projects throughout the city, many of which will remain permanent. Mr. Huang said the Expo, which features the theme "Better City, Better Life," offers a huge opportunity to develop and modernize a major part of the city. He estimates Expo will spur a half million new jobs and new economic growth of 6.5 percent in 2010 and 2 percent a year after that.

Gov. Gregoire talked about the World's Fairs at Seattle Center in 1962 and Spokane in 1974 and introduced representatives from Washington companies with expertise in large-scale construction and technology. "Washington companies are ready to partner with you to help you achieve success at Expo 2010," she told the Deputy Director General and his colleagues. He indicated interest in contracting with Washington firms and said, "We will take this friendship well into consideration."

At a working lunch, Ron Cai, an attorney with the Shanghai office of the Seattle-based law firm Davis Wright Tremaine, led a presentation on doing business in China. The governor and delegates heard about business customs and practices, intellectual property rights and patent enforcement, and doing due diligence to ensure reputable business partners and quality workmanship.

After the presentation, delegates shared reactions to the trade mission as well as the presence of the Washington State Department of Community Trade and Economic Development (CTED) in Japan and China. Todd Qian, CEO of Apollo Technology said, "The entry we gain through CTED in China is great. Having CTED's help in setting up meetings and having them in the meetings is very valuable. It looks like we'll close a deal here with their help."

John Cedergreen, COO/Owner of Columbia Foods, said, "China has a huge interest in doing business with us but language can be a barrier. The offices the state has, with bi-lingual people, support on the ground and their relationships, are essential."

Sandra Archibald, Dean of the Evans School of Public Affairs at the University of Washington, talked about meetings she had with educators in both Japan and China to begin the establishment of cooperative exchanges on innovative higher education programs. "I could not have had the level of meetings I did without being part of the governor's delegation," she said.

Others in the delegation expressed similar views on the importance of building Washington State relationships to facilitate economic and academic expansion in the global economy. Gov. Gregoire added, "Washington State is almost like its own country with the extent of our relationships through our ports, our products and our services. Our niche in the world is quality. It's our reputation and we need to build on it."

In the afternoon, Gov. Gregoire met with Mr. Han Zheng, Mayor of Shanghai and an important figure in Chinese government. The mayor talked about the rapid growth of Shanghai and of the warm relations between Washington State and his city. He was interested in how the two might develop further relations of benefit to both. "We need to solve today's problems to be ready for the future," he said. Following their conversation, Gov. Gregoire presented the mayor with a hand-carved cedar paddle from the Tulalip tribe.

The governor, Director Loveland, CTED Director Juli Wilkerson, Sen. Jim Kastama, Sen. Cheryl Pflug, Rep. Bruce Chandler and others in the delegation then visited the Carrefour Super Centre Gubei, a large supermarket. They mingled with customers and addressed the media as part of a promotion for Washington state apples, potatoes, wine and other agricultural products. Included in the group were B.J. Thurlby, Washington Fruit Commission; West Mathison, Stemilt Growers; Keith Hu, Northwest Cherries; and Randy Mullen, Ted Tschirky and Matt Harris from the Washington Potato Commission. China, which has mostly small-scale individual agriculture operations, is losing many farmers to cities and to aging and it cannot keep up with the food demands of its population.

In the 2004-05 season, Washington shipped approximately $42 million worth of apples and $6 million worth of cherries to China. Frozen potato products are a growing market as well in China. Ben George, a cattleman from the Ellensburg area who was in the delegation spent the afternoon visiting a dairy farm outside of Shanghai to learn about livestock practices in China.

Late in the afternoon, the governor and delegates drove to the Zhangjiang Semiconductor Industry Park, a massive high tech center under development on the outskirts of the Pudong district of Shanghai. The governor was received by Ms. Yu Ying Shang, Deputy Mayor of Pudong New District. Washington-based Mulvanny G2 is the architect for the project and Ming Zhang, a Senior Vice President at Mulvanny and member of the governor's delegation, gave a briefing on the futuristic development consisting of 80 buildings totaling 2.5 million square feet.

Following the industrial park visit, Gov. Gregoire participated in a signing ceremony with Bellevue-based Apollo Technology and Shenzhen Development Bank. Apollo provides integrated and secured lending infrastructure to clients that include major world banks and financial institutions.

Gov. Gregoire concluded the 11-day trade mission with a reception designed to allow members of the Washington state delegation to meet informally with their Shanghai-area counterparts. The governor greeted local dignitaries and told the crowd of about 120 that she considered the mission a great success.

"On this trip we've built on ties in Japan and China formed by my predecessors, including Gov. Locke who established many close connections in Asia, especially in China," said Gov. Gregoire. "Over the past 11 days, we've also developed new relationships and friends in Japan and China. I can't emphasize enough how important that is.

"I'm convinced that our prosperity at home in Washington state depends on our being engaged globally in business, agriculture and education. The future of Washington citizens is linked to our place in the world,� she added.

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