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China Trade Mission 07

Beijing, Ningxia and Shanghai

Member Businesses meet with Chamber of Commerce of Ningxia

Canadian International Opportunities Inc. (CIOI) located in Charlottetown, is a new Chamber member and one of Prince Edward Island’s fastest growing international consulting firms. CIOI is primarily focused on finding, matchmaking and developing business opportunities for PEI companies in the Chinese and Asian Pacific markets. CIOI’s key services are international business brokerage, market research, translation and communication services, and trade mission preparation and liaison services. The firm is also committed to enhancing economic and cultural ties between Atlantic Canada and China. Recently, CIOI was contracted as the lead liaison for a Trade Team PEI trade mission to China in October and November 2007.

Co-Chairs, Doug Smith and Stephen Murray, of Trade Team PEI and CIOI’s senior partners Xuan (Frank) Zhou, Lloyd Compton and senior consultant Shuo (Sherry) Huang organized and brought a group of Island business people and senior Government officials to three of China’s well known economic regions; Beijing, NingXia, and Shanghai. The primary goal of this mission was to establish initial contacts, transfer knowledge on each region’s unique economic strengths and assets, and to discuss opportunities and contracts for Island organizations to do business in China.

success in our mission

Trade Team PEI and CIOI acted as a liaison between delegates from PEI and China, facilitating individual meetings for the trade mission participants and small group meetings with key government officials in Beijing and NingXia, provided guided familiarization tours to the PEI delegation; and provided translation and interpretation services while in China.

While in Beijing the twenty Trade Mission delegates visited two of China’s most prestigious universities, TsingHua University, China’s highest ranked university, and the China Agricultural University, which is recognized as one of the world leaders in agricultural developments. The group also had the opportunity to meet with the Deputy Minister of Science & Technology of China and visit the TsingHua Science Park, considered to be the “New Silicon Valley” of China. Finally, in Beijing, several meetings were held with local private sector entrepreneurs to discuss possible mutual areas of trade and economic development.

seeing the prosperous market

Next, the PEI delegation traveled to NingXia, one of China’s leading agricultural regions. This area of China is in need of knowledge and technologies on automated and advanced commercial food production and storage. While in NingXia, Island delegates were treated to a private meeting with the Province’s Chief of Staff and key administrative heads to further discuss potential collaboration and opportunities between Prince Edward Island and NingXia. Following this, another formal meeting was held between Trade Team PEI and the Chamber of Commerce of NingXia, with some of that province’s most successful entrepreneurs. It seems that Chamber groups all over the world attract the best of the best in the business world. During this meeting, both parties had an open discussion and shared best practices with respect to their own businesses and explored possible business opportunities.

More to come

Shanghai, China’s biggest economic center and an internationally famous port city, is of the highest importance to China’s economic strategy. In Shanghai, some of the delegates explored new potential business opportunities. Finally, Island delegates also traveled to Yiwu, a city in Zhejiang province of China. Yiwu is famous for its small commodity markets. Today, Yiwu is a prosperous economy with a flourishing global market. Small commodities have created big business opportunities in Yiwu. Yiwu commodity market occupies an area of 1.5 million sq.m, has over 50,000 stores, and sells about 200,000 varieties of goods. Delegates became familiar with the prosperous market and formed important initial relationships for further potential collaborations.

Organizers believe the mission was a success and a reverse mission of Chinese delegates coming to Charlottetown is in the planning stages for next year.

“We would not have had any success without the services of the matchmaker; identifying businesses and the language barrier would have been major issues.” – Trade Mission Participant

Photos from this event

ALL MATERIAL COPYRIGHT CANADIAN INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES INC. 2008