Business Facilities - September 2008 - (Page 42)

INTERNATIONAL PROFILE Germany ices sectors have established their European headquarters or a branch office in Bavaria. In fact, more than 300 new jobs have been created in these sectors in the last seven months, according to Müller. “Many more IT and services companies are currently planning their facilities in Bavaria with the ready support and assistance of Invest in Bavaria. “Bavaria is a top address in Europe for ICT and services companies,” Müller continues. “It offers not only an innovative environment and a well-qualified labor force, but a wide-ranging, dynamic, and international corporate landscape with attractive customer potential. Bavaria’s strategic position at the cenEmployment by sector (in percent) Services Hessen, Bavaria is a hub for financial services in Germany. On average, one new company operating in the financial sector locates in Bavaria every month. One of the biggest universal banks in Scandinavia, Svenska Handelsbanken, currently is expanding and has had offices in Munich since January 2008. With its crossborder competencies, the bank can keep track of the local and international business of export-oriented, Bavarian companies, in keeping with its motto: “Banking is global—business is local.” FRANKFURT IS CENTRAL GERMANY’S “MAIN” EVENT Frankfurt am Main is the largest city in Hessen, a historically colorful state in western-central Germany. Frankfurt has Germany’s tallest skyscrapers and highest GDP, and is considered continental Europe’s financial capital—home to Germany’s stock exchange, the Bundesbank, and the European Central Bank. Frankfurt has earned its financially funny nicknames “Mainhattan” and “Bankfurt.” Frankfurt lures numerous international corporations such as General Electric, Canon, Motorola, Honda, Procter & Gamble that want to be headquartered in the core of the European Union. Moreover, Frankfurt attracts 20% of Germany’s overall foreign direct investment to Hessen. The city also hosts a number of major international trade fairs, featuring everything from consumer goods and books to automobiles. Frankfurt’s central German location (as opposed to Berlin and Hamburg in the north and Stuttgart and Munich in the south) makes it the heart of the country’s road and rail traffic. Its interna- Frankfurt am Main at night HESSEN FAST FACTS Capital: Wiesbaden Area: 21,115 square kilometers Population: 6,070,400 GDP per capita: EUR 35,701 University graduates per year: 20,335 (2006) 47.5 Manufacturing tional airport processes more travelers than any other airport in Germany. HESSEN HOOKS HUAWEI Huawei Technologies, a leader in providing next generation telecommunications network solutions for operators around the world, recently opened its new Innovation and Demo Centre in Darmstadt, Germany. The Centre creates an environment where Huawei customers and partners can experience, develop, and test Huawei’s latest innovative solutions. Darmstadt is located in Hessen, not far from Frankfurt. Huawei’s investment decision brings jobs and technical expertise to an area that is already the home of both German and international companies in telecommunications. There are 10,000 ICT companies in Hessen, including industry leaders such as Amazon, Daewoo, Dell, and 25.4 Commerce, hospitality, transport 24.9 Agriculture, forestry, fishing 2.1 Statisches Bundesamt ter of Europe and its excellent infrastructure offer first-class opportunities for opening up markets, and not only in Germany.” This was precisely the reason why the French IT company Geensys, specializing in embedded systems, recently set up facilities near the firstrate Bavarian automobile industry in order to look after its customers in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Financial service providers also greatly value the market opportunities offered in Bavaria. Alongside Frankfurt am Main in the state of 42 SEPTEMBER 2008 PHOTO CREDIT: EXIM EUROPE

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Business Facilities - September 2008

Business Facilities- September 2008 Contents First Word Snapshots Corporate Moves:�Mississippi Editor's Location Picks 2008 The Palmetto State Reaches Across the Sea Corporate Moves:�Tennessee Metro Spotlight:�Spokane, WA Biotech: Building Block for Development Wind Power Lifts Iowa Germany:�Europe's Economic Juggernaut California Here We Come Up, Up and Away in North Carolina Corporate Moves:�West Virginia Metro Spotlight:�Decatur/Greensburg, IN Advertiser Index Ask the Expert

Business Facilities - September 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.