CA, Guangdong boost ties

Two major economic powerhouses, separated by an ocean, are finding new ways to cozy up and pool their resources.

Organized by Guangdong province department of commerce and the California governor's office of business and economic development, the 2014 China (Guangdong)-US (San Francisco) Economic and Trade Conference kicked off Monday morning.

The delegation including Guangdong's government officials and representative of enterprises were warmly welcomed by Chinese consulate in San Francisco and California government officials.

"Today's trade conference provides a new platform for California and Guangdong province to find new opportunities to collaborate with each other," said Darlene Chiu Bryant, executive director of ChinaSF, which is the host of the conference.

Guo Yuanqiang, director general of the department of commerce of Guangdong province, recognized the event as a great chance to facilitate bilateral cooperation between Guangdong and California.

Guo said that with the cooperation between Guangdong and California deepening, the economic complementarity and great cooperation potential between two regions are more obvious.

Guangdong looks to enhance cooperation with California in information technology development, new energy environmental protection, biopharmaceutical and advanced manufacturing industries, said Guo, adding that right now, Guangdong is accelerating the cultivation of market-oriented, legal and internationalized commercial environment.

Xia Xiang, economic and commercial counselor of China in San Francisco, said that the trade volume between China and the US expanded to $562.3 billion in 2013.

Guangdong and California are major economic centers of China and the US, Xia said.

"Guangdong province has the largest economy among all provinces in China," he added. "In 2013, Guangdong's GDP reached 6.21 trillion yuan, which accounted for 10.9 percent of the national total, and has been ranking No 1 in the whole country for 25 consecutive years."

At the same time, California also plays a very important role in the US economy. And Silicon Valley has already become the center of technology innovation in the world, said Xia.

Because China and the US are at different stages of economic development, there will be a large potential for both sides to pursue win-win collaboration, he added.

During the conference, Brian Peck, deputy director of the California Governor's office, introduced California's ongoing actions and policies to facilitate investment in both directions and continue to promote bilateral trade.

"California has several new tax deduction policies to welcome Chinese investors," Peck said. "Our state policy is pretty open to foreign investors."

According to Peck, the California Trade Offices in Shanghai could be a good avenue for Chinese investors to connect with California and the offices' full-time employees are happy to provide professional assistance for Chinese investors who have serious interest in expanding business to California.

During the conference, Raymond Bracy, senior vice-president of Wal-Mart China, expressed his appreciation for Guangdong's continuing support for Wal-Mart's business in China over the last several years.

Wal-Mart began its business in China in Shenzhen, Guangdong province in 1996, said Bracy.

Song Qinguo, executive vice-president of China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA), shared CAIGA's experience in the acquisition of Cirrus, a Minnesota-based aircraft company, in 2011.

zilian@chinadailyusa.com