Governor to Travel to China and Japan

Press Release

Governor Mitch Daniels will again lead a delegation of Hoosier business leaders and elected officials on an economic development and jobs trip to China and Japan. This will be Daniels' second trip to China and fifth trip to Japan since 2005.

The governor will depart Indiana on November 6 and return on November 17. He will travel in China from November 7 to 13 in Shanghai and Zhejiang, Indiana's Chinese sister-state, then go on to Japan from November 14 to 17, where he will visit Nagoya and Tokyo. Daniels will meet with government and business leaders in both countries and will host business receptions for potential investors. The delegation is expected to have about 40 members.

"Following our first trip to China last year, we've had several successes. The potential for more jobs from China is growing, and we'll spend additional time there this year," said the governor. "Of course, our trips are always built around visiting our customers in Japan, and we'll do the same again this year."

More than 42,000 Hoosiers are employed by more than 200 Japanese companies in the state. Those companies have investments here of more than $9.8 billion. Since last year's trip, China-based Y.K. Furniture announced plans to establish a $24 million U.S. headquarters in Marion and lithium-ion battery maker EnerDel announced an agreement with Wanxiang, the largest auto parts producer in China, which EnerDel says will rapidly accelerate its business plan. The governor met with officials from Y.K. Furniture and Wanxiang during his 2009 trip to China.

The governor will meet with officials from Wanxiang, Geely, Dongfeng and other auto companies while in China. Officials from those companies visited Indianapolis earlier this year for the first-ever U.S.-China Advanced Technology Vehicle Summit. He will also pay respects to executives from Honda, Toyota and Subaru as well as other companies with Indiana operations while in Japan.

The cost of the state delegation is being covered entirely through private donations to the Indiana Economic Development Foundation; no tax dollars will be used. In addition to Governor Daniels, the state will be represented by Secretary of Commerce Mitch Roob. The IEDC has two offices in China and one in Japan, and representatives are assisting with trip arrangements.

In 2005, Governor Daniels led the largest delegation in Indiana history on his first jobs hunting mission to Japan and Taiwan. The following year, the governor returned to Japan and also made economic development stops in South Korea. Daniels led two trade missions in 2007, one to Germany and the United Kingdom, and another to Japan. The governor was unable to join the state delegation that traveled to Japan in 2008 because he stayed to coordinate the state's disaster recovery efforts following severe weather and flooding across much of the state. In 2009, Daniels led the first economic development mission to China by an Indiana governor in more than a decade.

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