For the first time ever, the US will be the partner country of the Hannover Messe in 2016. The news was announced in a letter from US Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker to German Ambassador to the US, Peter Wittig. With over 6,500 exhibitors and hundreds of thousands of visitors, the Hannover Messe is the largest industrial trade fair in the world. Each year, the Deutsche Messe board selects one country to showcase for the week-long event. Hannover Messe, according to the Deutsche Messe press release, is the perfect place for the US to, “reinforce its reputation as a high-caliber manufacturer of competitive, top-quality products.” It will also serve as an opportunity to show off US-German industrial cooperation.
“Hannover Messe is of exceptional importance to the development of our transatlantic trade relations,” Ambassador Wittig noted. “Having the USA as the featured Partner Country will give us a golden opportunity to convey our dynamic business relations to the fullest while at the same time widening and deepening them.”
Stronger Industrial Ties
At the recent SelectUSA Investment Summit, US President Barack Obama announced intentions to up US investments in industry. At the same summit, Secretary Pritzker, too, highlighted the need to better US industrial competitiveness. “We’re going to give workers and businesses the tools they need to succeed in a fast-paced, highly competitive, constantly changing world,” said President Obama. The Hannover Messe is an excellent opportunity for dozens of US companies to present their work.
The US delegations are expected to focus on high tech industry and smart technology. The fundamental goal is to attract international investment. Many German companies currently invest heavily in the US. Germany’s auto manufacturers all have plants in the US where they hire and train US workers. Other companies, like Siemens and Bayer, have strong US connections as well. The US presence in Hannover will strengthen these bonds, improve investment and spark more transatlantic trade.
The Hannover Messe will take place from April 25 to 29, 2016.
Memorandum of Understanding
On March 24, the Deutsche Messe AG and the US Department of Commerce cohosted an event in Washnigton, DC commemorating the partnership between the US and Germany. Negotiations for the US’s Partner Country role at the Hannover Messe have been ongoing for years. Deutsche Messe’s Dr. Jochen Koeckler and Deputy Assistant of the Department of Commerce Matthew Murray celebrated reaching the agreement by cosigning a Memorandum of Understanding in honor of the upcoming event.
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