Wednesday, January 26, 2000
Japan mission aims for trade
Taft pushing Ohio as a 'brand name'
BY MICHAEL HAWTHORNE
Enquirer Columbus Bureau
COLUMBUS — Even though Japan is mired in recession, Gov. Bob Taft said Tuesday he chose the country for his first overseas trade mission to strengthen economic ties with Ohio.
An entourage led by Mr. Taft and his wife, Hope, is to leave Friday on a 10-day trip to Tokyo, Toyohashi and Osaka, where the Cincinnati native will remind Japanese officials the industrial Midwest is eager to attract more investment and expand exports of Ohio goods.
It's unclear whether the Japanese are in a position to make dramatic moves reminiscent of the country's economic boom during the 1980s, when Honda expanded its Ohio operations and Toyota opened an $800 million plant in Georgetown, Ky.
Ohio's exports to Japan dropped to $1.4 billion in 1998 after peaking at $2.65 billion in 1996. And the state's tight labor market could make Japa nese investment in Ohio businesses less attractive.
But while the timing of Mr. Taft's trip may seem odd, he noted that business relationships develop slowly in Japan.
“There are some signs the Japanese economy is beginning to move out of its slowdown,” Mr. Taft said. “We need greater exposure for Ohio as a brand name so we will have a better opportunity to take advantage of the country's renewed growth.”
An International Monetary Fund report released last fall concluded there are signs that Japan, which has been struggling with its worst recession in 50 years, was beginning “to take important measures to stabilize its economy.”
That's good news for Ohio, which ranks second in the nation in the number of workers employed by Japanese firms and fourth in the dollar value of Japanese investments, according to the Ohio Department of Development.
Japanese firms have invested more than $11 billion in 300 Ohio businesses, which employ more than 56,000 people.
In Southwest Ohio, there are 42 Japanese firms employing 4,000 people, including Sun Chemical in Winton Place, and Fujitech and Mitsubishi Electric Automotive in Mason, said Steve Kelley, chief economist for the Development Department.
Mr. Taft's trip is the first to Japan by an Ohio governor since Richard Celeste visited in 1990. Former Gov. George Voinovich traveled abroad nine times during his eight years as governor, including trips to China, Germany, Israel, India, South Korea, Brazil and Chile.
Representatives from 29 companies, universities and economic development agencies are joining Mr. Taft, including officials from Cinergy Corp., Fifth Third Bank, Firstar Bank and the Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce.
The trip will cost taxpayers about $100,000 to send Mr. Taft, his wife, representatives from the Development Department, the governor's office and the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
“We're looking for other manufacturing employers to move to Southwest Ohio,” said David Smith, Cinergy's director of economic development, who will be making his ninth trip to Japan since 1987. “That means more companies and employees who need electricity and gas.”
With just over a week to make his sales pitch for the state, the governor faces several challenges during the trip.
Honda last spring picked eastern Alabama for its third U.S. auto production plant. Mr. Taft will try to persuade the company to rely on Ohio suppliers to its Marysville plant, northwest of Columbus, instead of encouraging them to open satellite operations in the South.
He also is seeking to boost Ohio exports. As Japan's economy started to decline, Ohio exports of transportation equip ment dropped 43 percent between 1997 and 1998. Chemical exports, the second-largest share of Ohio's trade with Japan, dropped 47 percent during the same period.
While the governor plans to focus on business concerns, there also is a cultural aspect to his trip.
Mr. Taft plans to present 50 Ohio-grown dogwood trees to Japanese officials, continuing a tradition started in the early 1900s by his great-grandfather, President William Howard Taft.
President Taft's wife, Helen Herron Taft, accepted a gift of 2,000 cherry trees from Japanese officials in 1909 to landscape a park around the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C., giving the nation's capital one of its signature images. President Taft later gave several dogwood trees to Japan.
Japanese officials and Gov. Bob Taft's cousin, William Howard Taft IV, planted a dogwood tree last year at President Taft's grave in Arlington National Cemetery.
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