Gov. Beverly Perdue, left, and Commerce Secretary Keith Crisco pose with an unidentified robot in an undated photo taken in Japan. The photo was posted to Perdue's Facebook account.

Perdue plans a conference call Thursday morning with reporters to discuss her economic development trip to Japan and China.

Gov. Beverly Perdue plans to lead a two-week trade trip to China and Japan in the last half of October.

Secretary of Commerce Keith Crisco, who has been to China 16 times, will join Perdue on the trip, along with business leaders and regional economic developers from across the state. More than half of the costs will be covered by "non-state funds," according to Perdue's office. The state will pay about $82,000.

China is North Carolina's second largest trading partner. Japan is fourth.

"This trip is about building and sustaining relationships that create jobs for North Carolinians," Perdue said in a statement released this morning. "Doing business with Japan and China results in $3.6 billion a year in trade, jobs for 20,000 North Carolinians and more than $200 million in foreign direct investment."

More after the jump.

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A Chinese delegation met with Gov. Beverly Perdue last week and visited Moore County as part of a trip aimed at strengthening ties with North Carolina, The Pilot newspaper of Southern Pines reports.

Perdue met with Yu Laishan, vice governor of Hunan Province, who encouraged Perdue to come visit, the paper reported.

The ties between Hunan Province and North Carolina reach back at least to World War II, when a pilot with the "Flying Tigers," who was from High Falls, NC, was shot down by the Japanese over the moutains of south central China. He was buried by local villagers and honored for his sacrifice.

Read the full story here.

Gov. Beverly Perdue this morning announced a new program designed to quickly retrain people for jobs where are shortages.

At a news conference at WakeMed, Perdue said she would use $13.4 million in federal stimulus money to start accelerated six-month training programs for 12 occupations. She called it "12 in 6," reports Rob Christensen.

"We know that people who have lost their jobs need to get back in the work force as quickly as possible," Perdue said. "This rapid training initiative provides them with a clear path to success in new, sustainable careers."

The 12 areas are nursing assistants, phlebotomy, medical coding, office/clerical support, masonry/tile cutting, plumbing, carpentry, welding, food service, auto body repair, manufacturing/materials and HVAC/industrial maintenance.

The new initiative comes at a time when North Carolina is experiencing double digit unemployment.

The program will be run by the state community college system. Scott Ralls, the community college president and Keith Crisco, the state commerce secretary attended the news conference.

The new training will begin in September. The state community college board is scheduled to vote on the program on Friday.

Here at Dome we've been working furiously to get to know Gov.-elect Beverly Perdue's 10 cabinet secretaries. And while we aren't experts yet, we've found a few facts that we find intriguing. Test your knowledge with our quiz.

The secretaries are: Lanier Cansler (HHS), Linda Carlisle (Cultural Resources), Britt Cobb (Administration), Gene Conti (DOT), Keith Crisco (Commerce), Dee Freeman (DENR), Linda Wheeler Hayes (Juvenile Justice) Al Keller (Correction), Kenneth Lay (Revenue) and Reuben Young (Crime Control).

— Which secretary holds a Ph.D. in anthropology?

— The new cabinet job is the first government post (local, state, federal) for this secretary.

— Only one of Perdue's new cabinet secretaries was a Tar Heel of the Week in The News & Observer. Which secretary was featured in the 2002 story?

— This secretary is the only member of the cabinet to have run for statewide office.

— The 4-H honored this secretary in 2000 for outstanding alumni work.

— This secretary was formerly an assistant attorney general for the state of Texas.

— Which secretary, known for fundraising prowess, helped the Girl Scouts' Tarheel Triad Council raise $7 million for a new campus?

— This cabinet secretary was a White House Fellow from 1970 to 1971.

— A manager of four North Carolina cities, this secretary is the Brevard City Manager Emeritus.

— In a former job, this secretary presided over 800 criminal trials.

Answers after the jump.

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