RALEIGH, N.C. – Gov. Beverly Perdue will lead an international trade mission to China and Japan next month in hopes of boosting commerce between North Carolina and Asia.

Perdue, Commerce Secretary Keith Crisco and others will be making the trip. Business leaders and regional economic developers will join the two as they meet with trading partners and recruitment prospects in China and Japan, North Carolina’s second- and fourth-largest trading partners. Most of the costs will be paid by non-state funds.

“This trip is about building and sustaining relationships that create jobs for North Carolinians,” said Gov. Perdue in a press release. “Doing business with Japan and China results in $3.6 billion a year in trade, jobs for 20,000 North Carolinians and more than $200 million in foreign direct investment. Asian trade and investment represent significant growth opportunities for our state – especially in an economic downturn.”

Recent Japan-related economic development announcements in North Carolina include expansions by Toshiba America Nuclear Energy Corp. in Charlotte and GE Hitachi in Wilmington, totaling more than 1,000 new jobs and $708 million in investment. In 2007, Honda Aero and Honda Aerospace announced new projects creating 300 jobs and investing $127 million in the Triad.

In May, the Hamner Institutes for Health Sciences in Research Triangle Park announced an agreement with China Medical City to create the Hamner-China Medical City Institute for International Drug Development. The institute will help produce new biomedical technologies that benefit the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China, as well as the rest of the world. The Hamner Institutes will partner with Commerce to hold life-science business seminars in Beijing and Shanghai.

The Asia trip is timed to coincide with the 33rd annual joint meeting of the Japan-U.S. Southeast Association and the Southeast-Japan Association (SEUS), organizations that promote commerce between the region and Japan. The eight Southeastern member states – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia — rotate hosting the event, with North Carolina serving as the current U.S. host. More than 400 Japanese and Southeastern U.S. leaders are expected to attend the event, which returns to Tokyo this year after having met in Raleigh last October.

John L. Atkins III, president and chief executive officer of the multidisciplinary design firm O’Brien/Atkins Associates in Durham, chairs the eight-state organization through the October meeting. Florida was the host state in 2005-2007; the next U.S. host state will be Tennessee.

State costs for the 14-day trip are estimated at $82,000, including travel, seminars, client visits and SEUS-related host state obligations of approximately $27,000. An additional $90,000 in expenses – more than half – will be covered by non-state economic development allies, with additional private-funding commitments expected within the next month, further reducing costs to the state.

More than 150 Japanese companies operate in all parts of North Carolina, providing well-paying, sustainable jobs for 18,000 people in the state in a wide range of industry sectors from information technology, telecommunications and electronics to life sciences, chemicals, automotive and aviation, Crisco noted. In 2008, Japan imported $1.7 billion worth of North Carolina goods, making it the state’s fourth-largest trading partner.

A dozen Chinese companies in North Carolina provide jobs for 2,500 people, with many more companies poised to make investment in the U.S. market. China’s rapid growth and desire to invest overseas have prompted many states to compete for this business. In 2008, China imported $1.9 billion worth of North Carolina goods, making it the state’s second-largest trade partner after Canada and representing a 250 percent increase over the past three years.

China has a major presence in the U.S. through the international personal-computer manufacturer Lenovo, with U.S. operations located in the Research Triangle.

Overseas business development activities in Europe and Asia have contributed significantly to North Carolina’s economic growth. In June, Crisco led a business development trip to Europe that included meetings with Deutsche Bank and Continental Teves – both of which have since announced major investments in the state totaling $36.8 million and 600 jobs.

Details for the trip are still being finalized. Following is an overview of the trip’s itinerary:

Oct. 14-17                   Travel to Tokyo, Japan

·         Economic development visits in Nagoya

Oct. 18-20                   SEUS/Japan, Tokyo

·         Economic development visits in Tokyo

Oct. 21-27                   Travel to Beijing

·         Meetings with trade and government officials

·         Economic development visits in Beijing

·         Seminars for Chinese businesses on N.C. Life Sciences, Automotive Industries

Travel to Shanghai

·         Meetings with trade and government officials

·         Economic development visits in Shanghai

·         Seminars for Chinese businesses on N.C. Life Sciences Industries–with the Hamner Institutes

Oct. 27-28                   Return to North Carolina

Agriculture Commissioner Steve Troxler headed a delegation that went to China last month to find more markets for crops of North Carolina farmers.