U.S. State-Level U.S. China Representative Offices: Assessing American Subnational Export Assistance in the China Market

U.S. state-level China offices are able to both create China export opportunities for local American small businesses that otherwise would not have occurred, and provide time, cost and risk-reducing export assistance services to clients for entering the China market. Tangible direct and indirect impacts on states' China market penetration capabilities vis-à-vis these China offices are shown through quantitative analyses and case studies with state governments, China representatives and individual companies. State's best practices in China representation and interfacing with local companies, including return on investment (ROI) calculation methods and market education programs, are assessed, and the interaction between U.S. state-level China offices and federal-level China-based export assistance sources are reviewed.