Commercial Services Sapporo (CS Sapporo) offers a wide variety of services for U.S. companies interested in exporting to Japan and for Japanese companies searching for new business opportunities. Please visit the CS Japan Web site for details. CS Sapporo's promotional activities are outlined on the Sapporo page.

Our services include:

• Providing business counseling to American firms, U.S. firms in Japan or their Japanese agents, and Japanese companies wishing to import from the United States.
  
  
• Assisting (as appropriate) in arranging appointments for visiting American exporters, organizing and supporting selected trade events, and assisting American firms in registering for these events.
  
  
• Publicizing American fairs of significance to Japanese importers.
  
  
• Providing space (when available) for small company-organized trade shows or seminars.
  
  

Overview of Northern Japan:

Hokkaido and Four Tohoku Prefectures (Aomori, Akita, Iwate, Miyagi)

Population - 11.9 million (as of 2007)
GRP - approximately $ 370.7 billion (as of 2005 / US $1=Y 110.11)

• Hokkaido is located roughly 500 miles north of Tokyo. The largest city, Sapporo, is the capital of Hokkaido, with a population of 1.9 million.
• The Tohoku region consists of six prefectures in northern Honshu, Japan's main island. (The consular district covers four of the six). Sendai, Tohoku's economic and commercial center and the capital of Miyagi Prefecture, has a population of 1.0 million.

The northern region is Japan's agricultural heartland, with dairy production and farming in Hokkaido and highly prized rice growing regions in Akita and Miyagi. With a GRP of $179.2 billion, Hokkaido supplies 12.3 percent of Japan's agricultural products, including 46 percent of its milk, 54 percent of its onions, 79 percent of its potatoes, and 100 percent of its sugar beet production (4.2 million tons). In addition, the region provides 25 percent of Japan's fish catch.

In 2003, northern Japan's direct imports from the United States amounted to approximately $1.8 billion. The main ports used are Ishikari and Tomakomai in Hokkaido and Hachinohe and Sendai in Tohoku. More than an additional $1.0 billion in U.S. imports to northern Japan also entered Japan through Tokyo, Yokohama and Osaka before being transshipped to their final destination in the north.

Northern Japan's two main international airports, Chitose (Sapporo) and Sendai, have good passenger and cargo handling capacities and are eager to develop more international routes.

Remarkable Developments over the years: