Safe you Finance

For the past two days, this town has hosted an international shopping expedition.

About 50 Chinese businesspeople, traveling with the Chinese Investment Promotion Agency, added a St. Louis stop to a weeklong swing through the U.S., looking for companies and real estate in which to invest. It’s the latest round of deepening trade talks between St. Louis and China, talks that local leaders say could create thousands of jobs here. "The big idea," they call it.

But before that idea becomes reality you need to know with whom you’re doing business. And for the Chinese, this weekend was all about getting to know St. Louis.

So the delegation visited the Danforth Plant Science Center and Express Scripts. They toured the Gateway Arch and saw the Mississippi. They heard from the governor and the mayor and business leaders. And Monday they talked business over steaks processed here in St. Louis.

Before they left, Zhang Yingxin, the investment agency’s deputy general director and the head of the delegation, sat down with the Post-Dispatch to share her thoughts about St. Louis, China and trade. Here are her comments, edited for length and through a translator.

PD: Why did you add St. Louis to your trip?

Zhang: We are here not only because of the "big idea" but also because of (an agreement) we signed last year (with state officials). We want to do some follow-ups on that and we want to have some concrete cooperation.

PD: Why is this trip important to building relationships between China and St. Louis?

Zhang: It’s just like going shopping. People will always choose good quality and low prices. But if the prices and quality are the same, they will pay attention to whether they know the shop owners. It’s deeply rooted in our culture. For the Chinese, friendship can turn into productivity. So I do think this trip has been very successful cash advance usa.

PD: China has benefited greatly from exporting to the U.S. in recent decades. Why do you want to invest here and boost imports from the United States?

Zhang: This is not a new topic. China has always focused on two-way trade. For the last 30 years we’ve focused more on (foreign direct investment), and for 17 years in a row the U.S. has been the biggest investor in China. … As our economy grows, the Chinese government is encouraging our companies to go global. … China is the biggest developing country in the world, and the U.S. is the biggest developed country in the world. We think the Chinese and U.S. economies are highly compatible to each other. … We need to enhance the cooperation and exchange between the two countries and enhance their mutual trust. I think enhanced cooperation is in the best interest of both countries.

PD: Is that harder to do, harder to convince people of, in a time of global recession, when some people think we should tend first to our own country and our own economy?

Zhang: China is always against trade protectionism. We think it does no good to any country in the world, and at these difficult times we need to work together and ride out the difficulties. Otherwise we’ll be like we were in the 1930s, with the Great Depression, or after World War II, when many countries pulled back. … Any trade protectionism will be a lose-lose situation. … Fortunately, we don’t hear any trade protectionist voices in St. Louis or Missouri.

PD: Do you expect more visits back and forth between St. Louis and China?

Zhang: We’ve received a very gracious reception and hospitality here. Of course we’ll want to give it back as the host in Beijing.

Source