Mission
“Our mission is to provide business development and support to Bay Area entrepreneurs and businesses accessing the China market, to support our elected officials in engaging in China, and to aid Chinese companies in expanding to the Bay Area.”
The Bay Area Council has been at the intersection of business and civic leadership, shaping the future of the Bay Area since 1945. Today, the Bay Area Council is focused on ensuring the Bay Area is the best place to live and work. The Bay Area Council welcomes business leaders committed to working with public and community leaders to keep the Bay Area the most innovative, globally competitive, inclusive and sustainable region in the world.
The San Francisco – Silicon Valley Bay Area serves as a major economic gateway to China and the greater Asia-Pacific region. Naturally, as the leading business organization in the area, the Bay Area Council has played a critical role in deepening and expanding trade and investment ties to China for over the past ten years. It has also served as a significant facilitator to the accelerating growth of Chinese investment in California and the Bay Area.
As an organization, we feature two offices in Shanghai and Beijing, operated by expert staff who offer unparalleled access to China’s major economic centers and support for navigating their complex systems. Leveraging our extensive experience and networks in China, the Council has also opened the California-China Office of Trade and Investment in Shanghai in 2013, partnering with the California Governor’s Office of business and Economic Development (GO-Biz). Since 2019, the Bay Area Council has also been a member of the GO-Biz China Trade & Investment Network, a multi-organizational partnership focused on further expanding California’s trade and investment efforts in China.
Beyond basic business development services, we also produce insightful research and analysis into the Chinese economy, particularly in its relations to the California and the Bay Area, and host cross-border delegations and events to better promote understanding and cooperation between the two regions.
The California-China Trade & Investment Network
The Bay Area Council is a founding partner of the China Trade & Investment Network (CTIN), a public-private program led by the Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz), economic development groups, and private sector companies across the state. CTIN is California’s primary vehicle for promoting both trade and investment between the state and China.
Programs run by the CTIN focus on assisting California companies seeking to engage in the China market, helping Chinese companies start and expand in California, and attracting foreign direct investment into California projects. Dedicated experts provide services to businesses throughout California and China to forge cross-border trade and investment relationships, particularly in the innovative environmental technologies, life sciences, lifestyle, and financial services industries.
As a member of China Trade & Investment Network, the Bay Area Council promotes bilateral trade and investment by organizing annual trade missions and hosting the California Pavilion at the China International Import Export (CIIE). A series of subnational collaborative agreements with provinces across China empower the Council to create opportunities for economic growth and job creation.
History:
On April 12, 2013, Governor Jerry Brown opened the California-China Trade Office in Shanghai during Bay Area Council’s trade mission to China. Bay Area Council partnered with GO-Biz to operate and manage the office with a mission to facilitate trade and investment opportunities between California and China. In 2016, the Los Angeles Regional Economic Development Corporation (LAEDC), California Asian Pacific Chamber of Commerce and the City of Sacramento joined the BAC to form the China Trade Office Network. Since opening, the Network has helped California businesses access export opportunities to China and attract foreign direct investment from China. The Network has assisted and supported dozens of visiting trade delegations, organized attendance to multiple conferences and summits, and assisted scores of businesses with their California-China trade and investment relationships.
Bay Area Council Offices in China
Shanghai Headquarters: 209B&210, Block 8, Knowledge & Innovation Center, No.398 Songhu Road, Yangpu District, Shanghai
Beijing Office: 701, Spaces International Center, No. 8 Dongdaqiao Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing
