U.S. Chamber Highlights Importance of U.S.-China Trade for Dallas-Area Businesses

DALLAS, TX—As part of a ten-city tour highlighting America’s growing trade relationship with China, today the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Dallas Regional Chamber of Commerce brought Texas’ small and midsize businesses together with international trade experts as part of a forum to highlight growth opportunities in China.

The event underscored the growing importance of Texas’ commercial ties with China and armed area businesses with information on how to overcome Chinese regulatory hurdles in order to market and export their goods. Chinese Ambassador to the United States Zhang Yesui met with individual participants and addressed the forum on the many growth opportunities in China for Texas exporters.

“China is a rapidly growing economy that Dallas-area businesses must access,” said Tami Overby, vice president of the Asia Division for the U.S. Chamber. “Texas’ local businesses have the products that consumers in China want and need. Our goal in holding these programs is to help them better understand the opportunity that trade with China represents, which can lead to more business growth and jobs for Texas.”

Following a national trend, Texas’ economic prosperity is growing increasingly reliant on the global economy and the growth of exports. In 2008, for the seventh year in a row, Texas was ranked as the number one state by export revenues. That year, Texas exported $192 billion in manufactured goods, which supported over 1,506,000 manufacturing jobs. It also exported $6 billion in agricultural products, which supported over 69,400 agricultural jobs. Of the 23,784 Texas companies that exported goods in 2007, 92% were small and medium-sized enterprises with fewer than 500 employees. Nationally, that percentage rises to 97%.

“The American business community stands to significantly benefit by tapping a vast market for export and investment opportunities, which creates jobs at home,” said Overby. “That is why the U.S. Chamber actively supports greater access to the Chinese market. Trade with China can provide Texas businesses access to tens of millions of new customers and provide an important source of growth in the highly competitive global economy.”

Beyond providing an overview of the business climate in China, the U.S. Chamber and its TradeRoots programs provide hands-on information on such topics as finding suitable partners, licensing, sales and marketing, distribution and trading, customs clearance, and regulatory issues.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.

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