Promoting Trade and Investment

The International Affairs and Business Development unit works to drive business for California and to address barriers to the Golden State’s continued global economic strength.

The unit provides critical support on issues relating to international trade and investment opportunities, foreign relations, international agreements and partnerships with the countries that have a friendly relationship with California.

The unit collaborates with federal, local and international partners namely with the California STEP partners to identify and assist small to medium size companies in developing markets abroad for their products and services.

California is the No. 1 state for attracting foreign direct investment. Coupled with numerous investment opportunities and diverse industry clusters, the state is a desirable place for businesses to operate. To showcase the world’s premier business locations, SelectUSA at the federal level was established to supply businesses with easy access to federal-level programs and services related to business investment.

For businesses looking for investment opportunities in the US, SelectUSA provides a litany of tools and resources:

• A searchable guide of federal programs and services available to businesses operating in the United States—including grants, loans, loan guarantees, and tax incentives;
• Industry snapshots that describe the competitive landscape; and
• A catalog on “Why to Select the USA?” that explains the advantages of operating a business in the United States.

In addition, the site offers a clickable map of the United States to direct our business visitors to individual states’ economic development agencies—their principal partners in the site selection process.

For more information, please visit the SelectUSA website or contact a commerce service office located near you.

In September 2012, Governor Brown signed into law Assembly Bill 2012, authored by Speaker John A. Pérez.

The bill made GO-Biz the lead state agency for international trade and investment activities. This includes creating international trade and investment offices outside of the United States, and accepting private donations for those purposes.

Governor Brown chose to open the first office in China, based on the economic potential.

In October, GO-Biz signed a partnership agreement with the Bay Area Council, a San Francisco-headquartered nonprofit business organization, to operate a California Trade and Investment office in Shanghai and organize trade and investment missions to China. Governor Brown announced during his State of the State address in January 2013 that he would head the first such mission to open the office in April 2013.

The new office will provide Californian companies increased access to Chinese business contacts, provide Chinese investors with access to California projects that will benefit from increased investment and will continue to facilitate new investment and trade growth between California and China.

GO-Biz is required to list all donations for the operation of the office and related activities. For the current list, please refer to our donor page.