Trip to Tokyo
Berlin, 15 May 2024 - A delegation of 28 Berlin companies and institutions is accompanying Berlin’s Governing Mayor Kai Wegner on his trip to Tokyo to mark the 30th anniversary of the twinning of the two metropolises. The main topics of the trip are sustainable urban development and infrastructure, innovative and digital economy and sustainable healthcare. Berlin Partner Managing Director Dr. Stefan Franzke is also taking part in the four-day trip to deepen economic relations between the two countries further.
On the first day, in addition to a briefing by the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Japan (AHK Japan) and the Japanese representatives of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection and Germany Trade & Invest, the agenda also included a tour of the Asakusa Shrine and a welcome dinner with all delegation participants. Day 2 brought many inspiring insights and connections, including visits to Mitsubishi Electric and Fujitsu, both of which also have offices in Berlin. Exploring the Toyosu Smart City offered perspectives on sustainable urban development and provided information about ideas and concepts. The final event was the AsiaBerlin Summit Tokyo, a forum for forward-looking ideas on “The Next Smart Society”. The Berlin evening reception with over 100 representatives from politics and business also offered space for valuable networking opportunities.
Other items on the programme include a visit to the SusHi Tech-conference and a farewell dinner for the Berlin business delegation.
Japan is in 13th place among Berlin’s most important foreign markets (2023) and is one of the strategic target markets of the Senate Concept for International Economic Cooperation. The export volume in 2023 was 354 million euros. The most important export product groups include pharmaceutical and similar products (share 33.5%), data processing equipment, electrical & optical products (share 20.1%), other vehicles (share 15.5%).
In terms of imports, Japan ranks 25th among Berlin’s most important supplier countries (2023) with an import volume of 126 million euros. This is an increase of five per cent compared to the previous year and almost ten per cent compared to 2020. The most important import product groups in 2023 were other vehicles (share 20.2%), data processing equipment, electrical & optical products (15.2%).
