LA Mayor, Business Leaders In Mexico To Boost Trade Ties
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA.com) — Mayor Eric Garcetti was in Mexico City Monday on a four-day trip to promote trade with the city of Los Angeles.
Garcetti is leading a delegation of executives from the Port of Los Angeles, Los Angeles World Airports, and the Los Angeles Tourism and Convention Board as part of the trade mission, which marks Garcetti's first as mayor.
Officials say Mexico is a critical partner for the Los Angeles economy as the city's second-largest export market and one of Los Angeles County's largest sources of foreign investment.
According to the Brookings 2013 Metro North America report, total trade between metro Los Angeles and Mexico was $14.91 billion in 2010, while trade between L.A. and Mexico City alone amounted to $2.18 billion.
Garcetti told KNX 1070 NEWSRADIO the delegation will work with the city's partners in Mexico to secure opportunities that will lead to job creation in Los Angeles.
Mayor Eric Garcetti
"We're a global city and part of a global economy, and local jobs in L.A. depends on those strong ties that we have," Garcetti said. "So I"m gonna be out there as the mayor of L.A. hustling for that investment, those contracts."
In addition to developing business ties, Garcetti's delegation will also seek to strengthen academic partnerships with educational institutions south of the border.
The mayor will participate in a signing ceremony between Loyola Marymount University (LMU) and the Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México (ITAM) to establish an education exchange program. He will also take part a signing ceremony between California State University, Northridge (CSUN) and the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) to establish a Center for Mexico and Latin American Studies at CSUN, according to officials.
The delegation is scheduled to return from Mexico on March 5.
