North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper recently led an economic development trip in Europe visiting France, Switzerland and Germany to talk business and international investment in the Tar Heel State.
He was joined by first lady Kristin Cooper, Department of Commerce Chief of Staff Marqueta Welton and other state officials.
In France, Cooper met with business leaders of Schneider Electric; in Germany, he spoke with Siemens AG about electric vehicle technology; and in Switzerland, he met with several companies including Syngenta, ABB and Novartis, according to a press release from the governor’s office.
“Germany is the second-largest source of foreign direct investment in North Carolina,” behind Japan, according to the governor’s office. Switzerland is the fifth and France the 12th.
There are over 300,000 jobs in North Carolina because of the state’s relationship with foreign companies, the governor’s office said, and Cooper hopes to bring even more by strengthening these ties.
“We know our strategy of recruiting foreign direct investment from companies around the world creates great paying jobs and puts money in the pockets of North Carolina families,” Cooper said in a press release. “We’ve had monumental success attracting companies abroad, most notably from Japan, and I’m excited to be able to strengthen our economic ties and build relationships for our state with companies in Western Europe.”
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About a month ago, Cooper met with the state’s top direct international investor, Japan, when their Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and his wife, Yuko Kishida, visited.
Cooper will be further strengthening his international ties this October when he hosts the annual Southeast U.S. – Japan Conference in Charlotte.