On July 14, Tong Guili, deputy mayor of Hangzhou, met with members of the delegation from Yokohama Rubber Company and invited them to establish their R&D center in Hangzhou.

Tong introduced the favorable investment environment of Hangzhou as well as the advantages of Hangzhou's developing automobile industry, including Hangzhou’s human resources and its environmental advantages. Tong also mentioned the advantages for Yokohama Rubber Company to have its R&D center near its factory in Hangzhou.

The Yokohama Rubber Company, a tire company based in Tokyo, Japan, was founded in 1917 in a joint venture between Yokohama Cable Manufacturing and B.F. Goodrich. In 1969 the company expanded to the United States as Yokohama Tire Corporation. It has set up a factory in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province.

The leader of the delegation said that Yokohama Rubber Company was optimistic about Hangzhou, and would give priority to Hangzhou when considering moving their R&D center.

By Li Cheng & Luo Jiao