The Arizona Commerce Authority plans to open five new trade offices in countries across the globe over the next several months.
Kevin O’Shea with the Arizona Commerce Authority told a House panel that the commerce authority plans to open offices in Canada and the United Kingdom by the end of the year. He said it also plans to open offices in Japan, Brazil and India in early 2024, raising its total number of trade offices from six to 11.
He said Arizona uses these offices to encourage foreign investment in the state and help Arizona companies market themselves overseas.
Canada is Arizona’s second leading trading partner behind Mexico. But while Arizona has multiple trade offices south of the border, it currently has no similar operations in Canada.
O’Shea said the new office will change that.
“You will see us having a nationwide presence in Canada,” he said. “We will not be a one-trick pony in Toronto or a one-trick pony in Montreal and Quebec City.”
The announcement came after the Arizona House Committee on International Trade visited Canada, Romania and the United Kingdom earlier this year.
Canada Arizona Business Council CEO Glenn Williamson said the trip north was particularly impactful after lawmakers met with Canadian pension funds that invest over $1 trillion in the U.S.
“So what you did is you gave the state of Arizona an opportunity to go after that $1.2-$1.3 trillion that goes all around the U.S.,” Williamson told lawmakers.
