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Between April
and May, the Chairman of SATDA, Mr. Robert Goodman,
held several strategic planning meetings with American
small and medium-sized companies (SME' s). They discussed
bilateral trade cooperation, including potential joint
venture and investment opportunities that can now be
found in China. Mr. Goodman, also, discussed many of
the services that SATDA provides to help bridge the
trade divides between China and America.
When it came
to discussing the changing investment climate for SME'
s in America and China, it was noted that there has
been a general shift in investment priorities for MNC'
s with projects in China. One of the key changes that
was observed was the move up the value-chain ladder
from simple machining and assembly/manufacturing work,
to a heavier proportion of projects that yield research,
management, and service outputs.
Currently,
there are 40,000 American companies with vested interests
in China. China, in turn, has become the United States
3rd largest trading partner and the 6th largest market
for American exports. Of the American businesses now
working and/or investing in China, SME' s have rapidly
become a leading force. This change away from only the
large U.S. companies doing business in China can be
traced to China's WTO status change. Before China became
a member of the WTO, many firms, especially SME' s,
felt the risks were just too great to proceed. Only
the larger corporations could afford to risk the time
and money to explore China's market potential. However,
since China became a WTO member and began to adopt the
same trade policies approved and accepted by the worldwide
business community, the level of risk for all organizations,
including SME' s, has dropped significantly. It is for
this reason that American SME' s have begun, in large
numbers, to seek out joint venture and investment opportunities
in the Chinese business community. Helping them to do
this every step of the way is SATDA.
SATDA is
committed to building bridges between Chinese and American
companies. Its years of experience, deep understanding
of each country's culture and business philosophy, and
extensive array of tools, contacts and services, all
contribute to the service portfolio maintained by SATDA
to help Chinese and American SME' s reach out and establish
new business relationships.
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