I continue to be a bit stunned by how quickly China has gone from being “the mysterious threat in the east” to being just another opportunity to do business.  While I’m not one hundred percent on board with Mr. Friedman’s flat world utopia, I do believe that China’s economic ascent will benefit a lot of people.  Nevertheless, I am more than a little surprised by some of the people that are jumping on the bandwagon.  I noticed the following blurb in the September 28, 2007 print edition of the Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal, at the bottom of page 33.

Chamber plans China trip

The Salinas Valley Camber of Commerce is sponsoring a trade mission to China from March 10-18. Cities to be visited include Beijing, Hangzhou, Suzhou and Shanghai.

An orientation session will be held on Oct. 4 at 4:30 p.m. in the Laurel Inn’s community room.

I lived in Carmel for nearly two years, and I think that Monterey County is truly one of the most wonderful spots on our planet.  It’s great that these folks are going to get a chance to experience China first hand.  However, one can’t help but wonder whether the “China Opportunity” story has gotten a bit overdone when the fine people of the Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce are dispatching a trade mission to the Middle Kingdom.

It has been a very long time since the agricultural industry paid my salary, but I find it hard to believe that shipping fresh spinach to China is economically viable (although I guess that one could view it as a sort of potential retaliation).  While I applaud their moxie, I’m skeptical that they will have an opportunity to meet with high-level government officials, let alone actually trade directly with China.  The last time that I visited, Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey did not appear to be set up as an international port.  Unfortunately, I think that dealing with China is still something that needs to be left to professionals who understand how to operate within that environment.

Technorati Tags:  China, China Outsourcing