From June 24 through July 2, 2006, the Kentucky World Trade Center sponsored a trade mission to Shanghai, Nanchang, Jiujiang and Beijing, China.

Led by Former Governor and Chair of the Kentucky World Trade Center, Martha Layne Collins, and co-sponsored by the Asia Center of the University of Kentucky, the trade mission featured a cross-section of Kentucky individuals interested in China. It included educators from Lexington, Louisville and Owensboro, as well as political officials from Louisville, and business people from throughout the state who are interested in or presently doing business in China.

Starting in Shanghai, the trade delegation visited a number of Kentucky companies in the area, toured the industrial Pudong area just across the river from Shanghai, met the Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) and the International Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, and received a debriefing from U.S. Consulate and Commercial and Education officers in Shanghai. Overall, the group was impressed by the tremendous growth and opportunities occurring in Shanghai.

The next stop on the trade mission was a visit to the sister province of Kentucky, Jiangxi, and the sister city of Louisville, Jiujiang. In the province's capital city of Nanchang, the trade mission met with the Provincial Governor and Vice Governor and was hosted royally to magnificent state dinners. In Jiujiang, the trade mission had an opportunity to visit with the Vice Governor and Mayor, as well as an automobile factory, local educational institutions to see how Chinese students are educated, and even hosted a conference on education and economic development. At each meeting, Governor Collins asked the Chinese hosts if there were any Chinese companies that might be interested in investing and doing business in Kentucky. She also received assurances that Kentucky companies wishing to do business in the area would be welcomed and given any necessary assistance to help them establish operations.

The third stop was Beijing where the trade mission met with the former U.S. Commercial Service officers who are now heading the State's new office in Beijing, and where we had a chance to visit Beijing Normal University, one of the leading producers of teachers in China.

Our trade delegation was extremely impressed with the opportunities and the tremendous growth in China. We learned that China last quarter grew at an 11% annual rate, making it one of the fastest growing economies in the world. Coupled with a population of 1.3 billion, it was obvious to the delegation that China offers tremendous opportunities for Kentucky businesses to sell their products.

An additional feature of the trade mission was the opportunity for those participating to develop close ties over the 10 days with each other. It gave a number of political leaders a chance to meet with business people and business people to meet with politicians, and a chance for educators to meet with both groups, so that they could exchange ideas on how to assist Kentucky individuals and entities wishing to work with China.

Click Here for a list of participating delegates