Tacoma-Pierce County Chamber in China | May 2024

Tacoma and Fuzhou have been sister cities for 30 years. The sister city program was developed under President Eisenhower in 1956 to build one on one relationships with cities in other countries so that people could cross national boundaries, get to know each other personally, and form mutual respect and understanding for other cultures.

​As we know at the Chamber, people want to do business with people they know and trust. Building relationships is the foundation for both business and diplomacy and the Chamber was honored to join Councilmember Rumbaugh on this critical trade mission trip celebrating our sister city relationship and exploring new business opportunities for Tacoma businesses.

Business

Andrea H. Reay, President and CEO along with Tacoma City Councilmember, Sarah Rumbaugh, attended and addressed the 7th Annual Digital Trade Summit, the 4th Annual International Digital Expo, the SE China Summit, and International Conference for Trade and Exhibitions.

​They also attended numerous meetings including the Fuzhou Municipal Foreign Affairs Office, Fuzhou Import and Export Commerce, and Fuzhou Free Trade Pilot Zone Administration, among many others.

Key Takeaways

Tacoma and Fuzhou have many opportunities to create mutually beneficial trade partnerships. In cooperation with the World Trade Center Tacoma and the City of Tacoma, this past visit and future meetings and priorities will include:

• Leveraging Fuzhou’s Overseas Chinese Community - Fuzhou is well known for being the hometown of a large number of Chinese who now reside abroad. With over 4.3 million Chinese from Fuzhou currently living in more than 170 countries and regions, tapping into this network can be a powerful way to attract international investment.
• Optimizing the Business Environment - Since 2022 Fuzhou has introduced 17 projects involving overseas Chinese, with a total contracted foreign investment of 531 million U.S. dollars.
• Promoting Academic Exchanges and Innovation - The first overseas Chinese Talent Conference brought together more than 1,000 guests from 37 countries and regions. Next month Mayor Woodards will travel with Lincoln High School Students to also emphasize the importance of academic and talent exchanges.
• Travel and Tourism - Direct flights and the airline industry are vital to business growth, cross cultural exchanges and development. While there is no direct flight currently from Tacoma to Fuzhou, exploring the opportunities can bring great mutual benefit.
• And Pandas - Always pandas.