Ohio exported $30.6 billion in goods to all Trans-Pacific Partnership countries in 2014, and $1.4 billion in goods specifically to Japan. Economic ties between Japan and Ohio run deep: According to JobsOhio, Gov. John Kasich’s privatized economic-development agency, Ohio has over 52,000 workers employed by Japanese companies. Japan is Ohio’s largest non-NAFTA trade partner and the state’s No. 1 foreign investor, home to over 461 Japanese facilities from 190 Japanese companies, most of them being automotive related, but consisting of a wide variety of facilities. Nearly 13,000 Japanese citizens reside in the Columbus area.

The economic collaboration between Japan and Ohio is of extreme importance to both parties, as Ohio is now the second largest recipient of Japanese investment in the U.S., right after California. The relationship between the two continues to develop, as more Ohio-based companies have begun to make investments in Japan. Moving forward, the continuation of Japanese investment, local employment and two-way trade will cultivate the high positive impact on the state’s overall economic health. The existent strong global ties between Japan and the State of Ohio will provide both with paramount opportunities for future economic growth.”

Join us for a conversation with Mr. Atsuyuki Oike to discuss economic ties between Japan and the U.S. and why free trade matters for Ohio consumers, producers, innovators, service providers and exporters large and small.