The United States’ largest event to promote local foreign direct investment (FDI): SelectUSA Investment Summit (SelectUSA) was held in National Harbor, Maryland, near Washington, D.C. from June 26-30th, 2022.

SelectUSA had more than 3,000 participants, including many economic developers from almost every state and territory of the United States. The summit attracted more than 1,200 business investors from approximately 80 countries and territories around the world. New investment projects in the United States are said to generate more than $ 60 billion in economic benefits each year, and increase employment opportunities for more than 50,000 people across the United States.

The conference was hosted by US Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, and also received a video welcome message from President Joe Biden, who was visiting Madrid for the NATO summit on that day, and was unable to attend in person. During the summit, governors from the states of Arkansas, Michigan, Indiana, and American Samoa attended and gave talks.

At a reception on the 27th hosted by Ambassador Koji Tomita at the residence of the Ambassador of Japan to the United States, host of SelectUSA Gina Raimondo, attending as a guest of honor, stated, “Japan is the only country I have visited twice since taking office.” She also strongly emphasized the importance of bilateral relations, speaking on “the role of Japan and the United States in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity.”

Many major companies and start-ups from Japan participated in the conference, including JETRO (Japan External Trade Organization). The City of Yokohama was the only local Japanese government to participate, through a representative from its Representative Office to the Americas. Yokohama has a long history of cooperation with the major states and cities of the United States, including exchanges with its sister city of San Diego, and the presence in Yokohama of the Japanese offices of states like Tennessee, Mississippi, etc.

The goal of Yokohama’s participation in the SelectUSA Investment Summit was to make connections across the USA with local economic development organizations, to gain knowledge of opportunities in the US that could be shared with Yokohama-based companies looking to enter the US market or establish a base, and simultaneously through these connections be able to offer valuable local information on programs in and the economic landscape of Yokohama to any US-based companies interested in learning more about doing business in Japan.

For more information on doing business in Japan, please reach out to the City of Yokohama’s Representative Office to the Americas: https://businessyokohama.com/global/newyork/contact/