Governor L. Douglas Wilder and The Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO): “Greater Opportunities”

Virginia has pursued trade with Japan in earnest since the first state trade mission to Japan in 1972. Since then, every governor except one has visited Japan on a trade mission at least once. At the start of Governor L. Douglas Wilder’s administration (1990­­­­­–1994), the relationship with Japan reached a new level with a partnership with the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).

JETRO, which is based in Tokyo and Osaka and has offices in 50 countries, is a non-profit under the auspices of the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry. It was founded in 1958 to promote Japanese exports.¹ By 1990, JETRO began to turn its focus away from exports to imports. They noted that their new initiatives were “larger in scope and more ambitious than any previous import promotion efforts by Japan or, for that matter, any other country in the world.” They stated that “[w]hat sets the initiative apart from earlier import promotion measures is the fact that they address every link in the import process, from the overseas exporter seeking to penetrate the Japanese market to the distributor or retailer as well as the grass-roots consumer in Japan.”²

The initiatives included tax incentives for manufactured imports; tariff elimination or reduction on certain products; increased import loan programs; and increasing the import promotion program, which involved an information network between exporters and importers, sending experts abroad to assist importation efforts, buying-and-selling missions, and inviting business people to Japan to learn more about Japanese markets.³

At the time, the U.S. exported $44.6 billion annually to Japan, which made it second only to Canada as a market for U.S. exports.⁴ The primary exports were computers, integrated circuits, apparatus for measuring and checking, aircraft, engines and motors, radioactive chemical elements, medical instruments and apparatus, telecommunication equipment, golf equipment, and antisera and other blood functions.⁵

Even before Governor Wilder was inaugurated on January 13, 1990, JETRO asked for a meeting with him. According to the memorandum, “[t]he JETRO Dialogue Caravan, consisting of 6 prominent Japanese business people, scholars, and government officials, will be visiting Richmond on Tuesday, January 23, 1990. The purpose of their visit is to discuss important issues affecting US–Japan relations and to promote a better understanding between Japanese and Americans.⁶

The meeting did, in fact, take place on January 23, 1990 at 2:30 p.m., between a meeting with several state delegates and a tour of the Capitol and the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate.

The delegation from JETRO consisted of Takeshi Kikuchi, Professor of Marketing, Department of Management Science, Science University of Tokyo; Hiromasa Yonekura, Manager of the Corporate Planning Office, Sumitomo Chemical Company, Limited; Mikio Kojima, President of JETRO New York; Takatomo Tozuko, of JETRO Tokyo; and Kunio Ito, Director of Public Affairs of JETRO New York. Governor Wilder’s talking points were to be:

1. “Virginia has the infrastructure to support an educated workforce for an international company.
2. Virginia has the education structure which emphasizes world geography and world languages.
3. Virginia has the cosmopolitan population to draw from for the workforce.
4. Virginia has three international airports—Dulles, Norfolk and Richmond—providing excellent air service within the international arena.
5. Virginia has the infrastructure to support a telecommunications and computer-dependent company.
6. Virginia has excellent medical colleges and hospitals to support a medical assistance program.
7. World Access, Inc. will definitely relocate to Virginia or Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia has been very aggressive; Dr. Edelstein has met with Governor Caperto and has had dinner at the Governor’s Mansion. He has also met with Senator Rockefeller and Senator Byrd’s staff.”⁷

JETRO’s other meetings on January 22 and 23 involved the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia; the Virginia Department of Economic Development; the Japan-Virginia Society; the Richmond News-Leader; the Metropolitan Economic Development Council; employee benefits consulting firm William M. Mercer-Meidinger-Hansen; accounting and consulting firm Ernst and Young, and the law firms of Hazel, Thomas, Fiske, Beckhorn and Hanes and Thompson and McMullan.⁸

Three months later, Mikio Kojima, the President of JETRO New York, described a new importation program to Governor Wilder: “This year, with an increased budget, we have expanded our import promotion activities both in scope and scale. One of the proposed projects is establishing trade experts in different state or local level of government accross [sic] the United States. These experts will identify potential products for export to Japan and act as a liaison between foreign and Japanese companies. Another activity is additional assistance to increase the number of selling and buying missions to and from Japan.”⁹ On May 4, Secretary of Economic Development Lawrence H. Framme, III, replied, noting that they “would indeed welcome JETRO locating a trade expert” in Virginia and commented that Virginia already had some ties to JETRO and has offices for 53 Japanese companies within the state.¹⁰

In 1991, Virginia’s government started to work through the details of having a senior trade advisor from JETRO in Virginia. Kunio Ito, Director of Public Affairs for JETRO, stated that they wished to assign a Senior Trade Advisor to the eastern part of the United States to focus on electronics and machinery. The advisor’s duties would include:

1. “Identifying potential American products and companies for the Japanese market;
2. Consulting American companies on export related matters;
3. Attending seminars as a guest speaker, trade shows, and visit manufacturing facilities;
4. Collecting product samples to forward to Tokyo for trade shows.”

JETRO asked only for office space, a secretary, use of office machinery and supplies, and a parking space. JETRO would take care of “the salary, housing and travel expenses, and an official car.”¹¹

Director of Economic Development Hugh Keogh was in favor of the arrangement, noting that “[h]ousing an experienced trade professional from Japan’s private sector at DED for a year or so would have numerous positive spin-offs. Most importantly it would assist Virginia companies in selling to Japan. It would teach our marketing staff in greater depth on how to do business with the Japanese and finally it would underscore the Commonwealth’s export development efforts in a public relations standpoint. Out-of-pocket expenses to the Commonwealth would be minimal.”¹² He later noted that the “U.S. Departments of State and Commerce. . .have assured us that they support JETRO’s effort to expand U.S. exports in the Japanese market.”¹³

Following a meeting of Virginia officials and JETRO at JETRO New York, Governor Wilder notified Kunio Ito of Virginia’s interest in the Senior Trade Advisor program on May 24, 1991, noting that he “placed the highest priority on export development activities.” ¹⁴

This letter formally began the process of creating an agreement.¹⁵ Virginia was not selected that first year, so Governor Wilder contacted Tetsuo Matsufuji, president of JETRO New York, to express continued interest in the Senior Trade Advisor Program, noting that Sumihito Hirai, Executive Director of Public Affairs for JETRO New York, visited the Virginia Department of Economic Development to determine if placing a Senior Trade Advisor there was feasible.¹⁶ Virginia was finally accepted into the program in 1992. On October 3, 1992, Governor Wilder wrote to Minoru Masuda, the chairman of JETRO, that he was “delighted that JETRO has selected Mr. Kazuhiro Kato as the Senior Trade Advisor-Japan for the Commonwealth of Virginia” and noted that he would be assisting the Division of Export Development of the Virginia Department of Economic Development. He also noted that the Virginia Department of Economic Development was already a part of JETRO’s Export to Japan Study Program and the Product Specialist Program, and that JETRO printed and distributed a catalog of Virginia products.¹⁷

Today, JETRO United States supports those who wish to invest in Japan through business consultations, assistance with finding business partners and distributors, setting up a business entity, visa applications, subsidy incentives. JETRO also provides market feasibility studies and estimates for the cost of setting up a business. Assistance is also provided to Japanese companies, including business consultations, market research reports, tradeshows, and networking opportunities.¹⁸ There are offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco. Assistance to Virginia is based in the New York office.¹⁹

JETRO retains a partnership with Virginia. For example, JETRO and the Virginia Economic Development Partnership (VEDP) hosted a trade mission representing 14 companies that were interested in business opportunities in 2019, as well as a meeting with the Japan–Virginia Society to update them on the current status of Japanese businesses in Virginia.²⁰ In 2021, the VEDP Managing Director of Business Investment, Courtland Robinson, contributed a promotional video concerning the benefits of investing in Virginia on the JETRO website.²¹

jetroagreement

“General Export Promotion Agreement between the Japan External Trade Organization and the Commonwealth of Virginia,” 3 October 1992.

Records of the Office of the Secretary of Economic Development, Correspondence and Subject Files, 1986-2002, Accession 34595, Box 31, Folder: JETRO, 1990-1993, Library of Virginia, Richmond, VA.