Chinese language President Xi Jinping met with international executives on Friday, March 28, 2025.
CNBC | Evelyn Cheng
BEIJING — Chinese language President Xi Jinping on Friday met with international executives and made a case for investing within the nation, as Beijing focuses on reaching out to companies amid escalating commerce tensions with the U.S.
He mentioned multinational firms had a giant duty to “uphold international order” and that they wanted to work hand in hand with China.
Xi emphasised that China was a protected and secure place for international firms. “To put money into China is to put money into tomorrow,” he mentioned in Mandarin translated by CNBC.
Echoing latest coverage plans, Xi mentioned that China would guarantee truthful alternatives for international companies to take part in authorities procurement bids.
Greater than 40 folks, principally international executives and enterprise officers, attended the roundtable assembly with Xi, together with Bridgewater Associates’ Ray Dalio, Normal Chartered CEO Invoice Winters and Blackstone Group CEO Steve Schwartzman.
U.S. President Donald Trump has raised tariffs by 20% on China since January over its alleged function within the U.S. fentanyl disaster, and threatened a swath of recent duties on main buying and selling companions beginning early April. Trump this week mentioned he may scale back China tariffs to assist shut a deal that forces Beijing-based ByteDance to promote TikTok’s U.S. operations.
The U.S. this week additionally added dozens of Chinese language tech firms to its export blacklist, the primary such restrictions below the Trump administration.
China has elevated its commerce with Southeast Asian nations and the European Union, however the U.S. stays Beijing’s largest buying and selling associate on a single-country foundation.
Xi mentioned U.S.-China commerce tensions must be resolved by means of negotiations. “We have to work for the steadiness of worldwide provide chains,” he added, noting there was no method out below decoupling.
Politburo standing committee member Cai Qi, China’s high diplomat Wang Yi and Vice Premier He Lifeng additionally attended the assembly together with the heads of China’s financial planning company, finance ministry and commerce ministry.
Seven international executives spoke on the occasion earlier than Xi gave closing remarks, in accordance with an agenda seen by CNBC.
Xi gave individualized feedback on the speaker’s remarks primarily based on previous historical past with the individual or the corporate, in accordance with Stephen Orlins, president of the Nationwide Committee on US-China Relations.
Orlins identified that the businesses current on the assembly already had pursuits in China.
Beijing has sought to offset commerce pressures, slightly than retaliate forcefully. It courted the executives of main U.S. companies at a state-backed annual convention that ran from Sunday to Monday. Apple CEO Tim Cook dinner was amongst those that attended the convention, whereas Tesla CEO Elon Musk was conspicuous by his absence. Neither have been at Friday’s assembly with Xi.
Additionally on Sunday, U.S. Republican Senator Steve Daines met Chinese language Premier Li Qiang in Beijing — the primary time a U.S. politician has visited China since Trump started his newest time period in January.
“This was step one to an essential subsequent step, which will probably be a gathering between President Xi and President Trump,” Daines advised the Wall Road Journal. “When that happens and the place it happens is to be decided.”
The White Home didn’t reply to CNBC’s request for remark.
Li urged cooperation and mentioned nobody might achieve from a commerce battle, in accordance with state media.
Prime executives of main companies together with FedEx, Pfizer, Cargill, Qualcomm and Boeing in addition to U.S.-China Enterprise Council President Sean Stein have been additionally current at Daines’ assembly with Li, in accordance with a international media pool report.