We are very pleased to share that World Trade Center Los Angeles (WTC-LA) and MAPLE have renewed our Memorandum of Understanding to promote economic development between Greater Los Angeles and Canada.
In 2017, we signed an initial Memorandum of Understanding to collaborate together on economic development opportunities capitalizing on the significance of both trade with Canada as California’s second largest export market and foreign direct investment as the third-highest investing nation in Southern California. Based on WTC-LA led research shared at the 2018 Select LA conference, Canadian-owned enterprises account for over $2.755 billion in annual wages across Southern California.
Some of the cross-border collaborations have included joining a Southern California business delegation to Toronto led by MAPLE in September 2017 where Michael Smith, Director of International Trade, also spoke on a panel discussion about opportunities for Canadian businesses in Southern California hosted by MAPLE co-founders Stephen Armstrong and Robert Kelle.
In April 2018, MAPLE invited WTC-LA president, Stephen Cheung, to keynote a sold-out MAPLE cross-border reception in Vancouver at the offices of PwC. Stephen’s talk highlighted the breadth of opportunities that exist in the Greater Los Angeles region energizing a room of Vancouver-area business leaders.
With the MOU renewal, WTC-LA and MAPLE will continue to pursue opportunities to connect Canadian businesses with opportunities in Los Angeles. Specific areas of sector focus include advanced transportation, entertainment (e-sports/digital media emphasis), bioscience, tech (fintech/cybersecurity/blockchain), and aerospace and defense.
We are excited and honored to be continuing our partnership with World Trade Center Los Angeles as we enter 2019.