{"id":48328,"date":"2026-06-27T03:17:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-27T03:17:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/48328\/"},"modified":"2026-06-27T03:17:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-27T03:17:16","slug":"japan-business-leaders-calchamber-mark-25-years-of-collaboration-on-shared-issues-advocacy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/48328\/","title":{"rendered":"Japan Business Leaders, CalChamber Mark 25 Years of Collaboration on Shared Issues – Advocacy"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"US-Japan-California<\/a>Once again, a working luncheon in Sacramento enabled longtime trade allies from the California Chamber of Commerce and leading associations of Japanese businesses to exchange thoughts on current issues.<\/p>\n

The June 24 gathering was the 25th annual visit between representatives from the CalChamber, the Japanese Chamber of Commerce of Northern California (JCCNC) and the Japan Business Association of Southern California (JBA).<\/p>\n

Leading the Japanese business delegation were:<\/p>\n

Tetsuya Koide, JCCNC vice president and western states managing officer for Mitsui & Co., Ltd.; and
\nYoshiyuki Hirooka, JBA president and vice president, All Nippon Airways \u2013 the Americas.<\/p>\n

CalChamber representatives at the luncheon were Jennifer Barrera, president and CEO, and Susanne T. Stirling, senior vice president, international affairs, joined by Frank Washington, first vice chair of the CalChamber Board of Directors and president\/CEO of Crossings TV.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Gathered after the June 24 lunch meeting are: (Seated, from left) Steven Teraoka, Japanese Chamber of Commerce (JCCNC) Government Relations Committee member\/ Teraoka & Partners LLP; Jennifer Barrera, CalChamber president and CEO; Yoshiyuki Hirooka, president, Japan Business Association of Southern California (JBA)\/ All Nippon Airways Co. Ltd.; Tetsuya Koide, JCCNC vice president\/ Mitsui & Co., Ltd; Frank Washington, CalChamber first vice chair\/ Crossings TV. (Standing, from left Keijiro (Kent) Hora, JCCNC executive director; Akemi Koda, JCCNC Government Relations Committee vice chair\/ USAsia Venture Partners Inc.; Hiroki Baba, vice chair, JBA Business and Commerce Committee\/ The J. Morey Company; Daisuke Arai, vice chair, JCCNC Government Relations Committee\/ Marubeni America Corporation; Susanne T. Stirling, CalChamber senior vice president, international affairs; Steve Sakanashi, JBA Business and Commerce Committee member\/ ABeam Consulting (USA) Ltd.
\nCurrent Topics<\/p>\n

Luncheon topics included California\u2019s budget, taxation issues, the overall economy, energy issues, affordability, and incentives for the international community.<\/p>\n

Also discussed was CalChamber\u2019s Building an Affordable California Act (Affordable CA)<\/a>, which has qualified for the November 2026 statewide ballot. Passage of the initiative will be a major step toward lowering California\u2019s cost of living by building the essential projects communities need faster and more affordably.<\/p>\n

The CalChamber expressed thanks to the Japanese business community for their collaboration in opposing legislation that would have increased taxes for international businesses. Assembly Bill (AB) 1790 by Assemblymember Damon Connolly (D-San Rafael)<\/a> would have eliminated the water\u2019s edge election \u2014 an intentional provision of California\u2019s corporation tax structure \u2014 forcing all taxpayers to file on a worldwide combined reporting basis beginning January 1, 2028.<\/p>\n

U.S.\u2013Japan Trade<\/p>\n

In 2025, two-way goods trade between Japan and the United States was $228.02 billion. Total goods exports were $82.06 billion making Japan the seventh largest U.S goods export market. The top five exports to Japan are chemicals ($14.62 billion), oil and gas ($10.88 billion), transportation equipment ($9.24 billion), computer and electronic products ($8.96 billion), and agricultural products ($6.30 billion).<\/p>\n

Imports from Japan to the U.S. totaled $119.51 billion making Japan the seventh largest import market for the U.S. Top imports from Japan were transportation equipment ($52.67 billion), non-electrical machinery ($25.18 billion), chemicals ($17.12 billion), computer and electronic products ($16.12 billion), and electrical equipment, appliances and components ($10.61 billion).<\/p>\n

Services trade between both countries totaled $98.25 billion, with services exports totaling $53.73 billion. Top services exports were other business services, charges for use of intellectual properties, transport services, financial services, and travel.<\/p>\n

Services imports from Japan to the U.S. totaled $44.52 billion in 2025. Top imports were transport services, charges for use of intellectual properties, travel, government goods and services, and financial services.<\/p>\n

California Trade Facts<\/p>\n

In 2025, Japan ranked 4th in California\u2019s export market partners, with exports to Japan totaling $11.01 billion. This is a continuing trend, as Japan has remained 4th in California\u2019s export market since 2010, making it a long-standing trade relationship. The top 5 exports to Japan last year were transportation equipment ($1.90 billion), computer and electronic products ($1.88 billion), processed foods ($1.36 billion), and chemicals ($1.18 billion) and non-electrical machinery ($1.07 billion).<\/p>\n

California accounts for roughly 13% of U.S goods exports to Japan. Japan also ranked the 6th largest in California importers, with goods imports totaling $28.92 billion, making California imports 24.19% of total U.S imports from Japan. The top 5 imports from Japan were transportation equipment ($12.96 billion), computer and electronic products ($3.35 billion), non-electrical machinery ($3.05 billion), chemicals ($3.05 billion), and electrical equipment, appliances and components. ($1.34 billion).<\/p>\n

Foreign Direct Investment \u2013 Japan<\/p>\n

Japanese companies are one of the leading sources of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the United States and California. In 2024, Japanese companies invested roughly $819.21 billion in the U.S. They provided up to 968,700 jobs, invested $11.5 billion in innovative research and development, and contributed $82.3 billion to expanding U.S. exports.<\/p>\n

Primary industries for Japanese FDI in the U.S. included industrial equipment, auto components, real estate, software and information technology (IT) services, chemicals, and electronic components. U.S. FDI into Japan totaled $57.46 billion in 2024. Select USA<\/p>\n

In 2025, Japan was the top investor in California, with Japanese foreign-owned enterprises (FOEs) in California providing 130,008 jobs through 3,501 firms, which led to an estimated $15.6 billion in wages. The top sectors for these jobs are manufacturing, wholesale trade, professional\/business services, retail trade, and financial activities (World Trade Center Los Angeles<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Trade Missions<\/p>\n

Recent trade missions are another indication of the importance of the ongoing relationship between California and Japan.<\/p>\n

Earlier this spring, Assemblymember Jessica Caloza (D-Los Angeles), chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Asia\/California Trade and Investment, led a trade mission to Japan<\/a>, underscoring the state\u2019s continued commitment to strengthening economic, cultural, and business partnerships across the Asia-Pacific region.<\/p>\n

The delegation, composed of state legislators, local elected officials, and public and private executives, advanced strategic partnerships across priority sectors: agriculture, health care, infrastructure, technology, and entertainment and lifestyle.<\/p>\n

In March 2023, a delegation of California businesses (including the CalChamber) and state agencies led by Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis and Dee Dee Myers, director of the Governor\u2019s Office of Business and Economic Development, traveled to Tokyo and Osaka for a trade mission<\/a> to advance business, collaboration and partnership between California and Japan.<\/p>\n

Trade Allies<\/p>\n

JCCNC<\/a> was established in 1951 as a nonprofit corporation to promote business, mutual understanding and goodwill between Japan and the United States. It has been a CalChamber member since 1997.
\nJBA<\/a>, founded in 1961, is a nonprofit organization consisting of nearly 420 Japanese corporations doing business across Southern California. It has been a CalChamber member since 1989.<\/p>\n

For more information on California -Japan relations, visit www.calchamber.com\/japan<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Staff Contact: Susanne T. Stirling<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Once again, a working luncheon in Sacramento enabled longtime trade allies from the California Chamber of Commerce and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":48329,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[175],"tags":[217,215,8,33233,214,216,33234],"class_list":["post-48328","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-business","tag-business","tag-business-of-japan","tag-japan","tag-japan-business-association-of-southern-california","tag-japans-business","tag-japanese-business","tag-japanese-chamber-of-commerce-of-northern-california"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48328","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48328"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48328\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48329"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48328"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48328"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/japan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48328"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}