Tom Stellman and Mitsu Yamazaki are finalizing plans to attend the 33rd annual meeting of the Southeast U.S./Japan Association in Tokyo. The SEUS-Japan conference provides an opportunity for leaders from eight states – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia – to network with Japan’s top business leaders and government officials. The location of the three-day conference rotates between Japan and each of the U.S. member states.

At the conference, TIP will be supporting our client the Community Development Foundation (CDF) of Lee County (Tupelo, Mississippi), in their effort to recruit Japanese investment. The CDF has retained TIP to create a ten-year comprehensive economic development strategy.

In preparation for the trip, TIP analysts have compiled data on suppliers to major Japanese automakers in the eight states. The data help to illustrate the tremendous economic multiplier effect Japanese investment has in the Southern U.S. The automotive industry is a prime example of how this works. Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mitsubishi, Mazda, Subaru, and Suzuki – the seven major Japanese automakers – all source parts in the eight-state SEUS region. At least five of these automakers have supplier networks that stretch into all eight SEUS member states. The three largest (Nissan, Honda, and Toyota) have each developed networks of more than 100 supplier plants in the eight-state region. Just a single automaker’s supplier network can easily support upwards of 40,000 jobs in the SEUS region. And these supplier networks contribute more to the region than jobs alone. Their manufacturing facilities also enhance the region’s property tax base. Honda, Nissan, Toyota, and Subaru each support a network of suppliers in the eight-state region whose support facilities cover over 17 million square feet of factory space.

Figure 1. The seven major Japanese automakers source a portion of their auto parts in the United States. This table shows the number of factories in each of the 8 Southeastern U.S. states that currently supply Japanese automakers.

Figure 2. This figure shows the number of jobs in each of the 8 Southeastern U.S. states that are supported by the suppliers to Japanese automakers.

Figure 3. This figure shows the total factory space in each of the 8 Southeastern U.S. states that is operated by suppliers of the Japanese automakers.

Related posts:

1. Indian Economy Accelerating