Nine business delegates, representing seven companies,
and five government officials participated on the South
Carolina Trade Mission to China, November 2-11, 2007. The
mission, organized and recruited by the S.C. Department
of Commerce in conjunction with the Columbia U.S. Export
Assistance Center (USEAC), included Gold Key Service
(GKS) mission stops in two of China's 2nd tier cities -
Chongqing and Tianjin. Three of the companies also
participated in GKS appointments in Beijing.
The mission's first stop was Shanghai where delegates
attended the Marine Corps Ball. The delegates then
traveled to Chongqing for the first pre-scheduled GKS
appointments. A highlight of the mission stop in
Chongqing was a kick-off meeting conducted on Monday,
November 5, which included the following key city
officials: Vice Mayor Mr. Wu Jianong, Vice Director of
Chongqing CCPIT Mr. Shi Lei, Vice Director General of
Chongqing Foreign Affairs Office, Vice Director of
Chongqing Foreign Trade and Economic Committee Mr. Chen
Yu, Vice Director of Chongqing State Taxation Bureau Mr.
Lu Ziqiang and Vice Director of Chonqing Local Taxation
Bureau Mr. Yin Congdong. U.S. Consul General Jim Boughner
and Principal Commercial Officer Eric Wolff from CS
Chengdu welcomed the Chinese officials and each business
delegate gave a brief overview of their company's
products. The event was covered on the Chongqing TV
evening news. Immediately following the kick-off meeting,
the government delegates met privately with the City of
Chongqing government leaders and were then interviewed by
21 Century Business Herald. All delegates participated on
a tour of ChangAn Ford company the following day.
Delegates then traveled to Tianjin for the next round of
GKS appointments. The last stop on the mission was
Beijing where delegates attended a dinner briefing
conducted by Deputy Senior Commercial Officer William
Brekke.
The seven companies participating on the mission included
Cox Industries of Orangeburg, SC; Gilkey Lumber Co. of
Rutherfordton, NC; Grizzly Forest Products of Joanna, SC;
Hydra Platforms Manufacturing of Rock Hill, SC; Next
Safety of Jefferson, NC; Chen Enterprises of Columbia,
SC; and Walex Products Company of Wilmington, NC.
Sr. International Trade Specialist Jayne Woodward,
Columbia, co-lead the mission with state partner Gregory
Guest of the S.C. Department of Commerce.
The five government officials participating on the
mission included The Honorable Elizabeth Gilland, County
Council Chairman, Horry County, SC; The Honorable Larry
Hargett, County Council Chairman, Dorchester County, SC;
The Honorable Joseph McElveen, Jr., Mayor, City of
Sumter, SC; Mr. Ray Stevens, Director, S.C. Department of
Revenue; and Mr. Hunter Howard, Jr., President & CEO,
S.C. Chamber of Commerce. John Ling, Director of
the S.C. Department of Commerce's Shanghai office, was
responsible for arranging appointments for the government
delegates.
Two major export partners of the Columbia USEAC, The
Export Consortium and the S.C. District Export Council,
helped fund the cost of the mission to keep the
participation fee affordable. The Export Consortium,
through a grant from the S.C. Manufacturers Extension
Partnership paid the Gold Key Service fees for the
South Carolina companies on the mission, and the S.C.
District Export Council contributed $1000 to help cover
mission costs.
From all accounts, the mission was a great success.
Several of the business delegates anticipate sales in the
near future as a result of contacts made and the
government officials now have a much better understanding
of the China market and its impact in the global
marketplace.
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