The Arizona government and the Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) have opened a new Trade and Investment office in Tokyo, Japan. This representation seeks to expand economic collaboration and foreign direct investment opportunities between the two regions.
This is Arizona’s third office in Asia, along with those already operating in Taiwan and South Korea, and joins the ACA’s international network in Canada, Mexico, Europe, and Israel. According to official data, Japan is one of Arizona’s main trading partners, and in 2024, total trade reached US$3.7 billion, the highest figure recorded to date.
Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs noted that the office seeks to strengthen cooperation in high-tech sectors, while ACA President Sandra Watson emphasized that bilateral trade has grown by more than 23% in the last five years. Japan also remains one of the largest sources of foreign direct investment in the state.
Japanese companies with operations in Arizona include Fujifilm, Toyota Motors North America, JX Advanced Metals, NRS Logistics America, Pentagon Technologies, and Komatsu, linked to industries such as semiconductors, automotive, and mining.
Data from 2024 shows that Arizona ranked second in exports of metal ores and fourth in computer and communications equipment to Japan. The Asian country was also the largest market for Arizona’s pharmaceuticals and medicines, and the third largest for navigation, electromedical, and control instruments, as well as communications equipment and metal ores. Conversely, Japan consolidated its position as the main source of industrial machinery imports for Arizona.
The ACA appointed Tsutomu (Tom) Hashimoto as director of the new office in Tokyo. Hashimoto has more than four decades of business experience, including three decades at Sumitomo Corporation and a stint as an advisor to the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO).
In recent months, Arizona has hosted several Japanese business and government delegations, most recently in November 2024 and February 2025. During those visits, the state’s education, workforce, and business climate were showcased in order to attract new investment and strengthen the bilateral economic relationship.
