Golden state for relations

California is keen to build on its long relationship with regions in China and is open to investment

A high-powered delegation from California, composed of business leaders and various government representatives, especially from the San Francisco Bay Area, has recently concluded a multi-city tour that has taken them to Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and other places. The fruits of the visit are billions of dollars of deals, the signing of various memorandums of understanding relating to cooperation on the environment, investment, infrastructure, agriculture, tourism and electronics, as well as the new friendships that have been forged.

The California-China relationship is a long one, stretching back more than 160 years. And by any measure, it is now an incredibly broad one.

China is California's third-largest trading partner, the recipient of billions of dollars worth of investments by major California companies such as Intel, Gap and Hewlett-Packard, and the source of thousands of foreign students and many famous entrepreneurs. California architectural and real estate companies, investment companies such as Silicon Valley Bank, and accounting and law firms have all manner of partnerships with Chinese entities. There are also an impressive number of ongoing exchanges between Chinese and California educational institutions, such as Shanghai Jiaotong University and the University of Southern California, non-government associations and scientists.

For its part, California has welcomed almost 29 percent of China's investment in the United States. It is the home to the largest number of Chinese in the country and runs the ports through which most Sino-American trade is conducted. It also takes one-third of the imports from China. The relationship only promises to become a more extensive one with the Chinese Ministry of Commerce forecasting hundreds of billions of dollars of investment in California by 2020 and even the Inner Mongolia autonomous region is exploring cooperation with the Golden State in agriculture and new energy. California Governor Jerry Brown emphatically stated in Beijing: "We are totally open to China."