President Xi Meets with American Business Titans
Photo Credit: Alex Brandon/AP via NBC News
On Nov. 15, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited the United States. His visit aimed to strengthen economic ties and ease geopolitical tensions between the two nations. There was a stark contrast between his last trip, in 2017, and his most recent visit, which now stands against the backdrop of more than half a decade of escalating tensions between the two countries.
President Xi held a high-profile dinner to encourage foreign capital to remain in China. Business Titans and CEOs like Apple’s Tim Cook, BlackRock’s Larry Fink, as well as others from Blackstone, Pfizer, Qualcomm, Boeing, Visa, Mastercard, and Broadcom joined the event.
The dinner, hosted by the US-China Business Council and the National Committee on US-China Relations, was a platform for Xi to pitch his nation’s economic potential directly to global power players. Amidst a global reopening post-Covid that fell short of anticipated growth, China still accounts for a substantial portion of sales for companies like Apple, Qualcomm, and Broadcom; making the country a vital market for these tech giants.
However, after a new security law passed this summer, Chinese police raided the Shanghai offices of multiple consulting firms conducting market research for investments in China. This tightening of national security laws and the perceived risks associated with foreign investments have left many questioning the country's intention for foreign capital to remain.
Despite concerns about economic growth, recent indicators suggest a potential rebound, with the International Monetary Fund forecasting a 5.2 per cent increase in the Chinese economy this fiscal year — compared to a mere 2.99 per cent increase in 2022.
“The Chinese economy is clearly weakening. There’s no question,” Derek Scissors, a senior American Enterprise Institute (AEI) economist, told BNN Bloomberg. “But if you need to stay in China, and you’re worried about your position because of Chinese government behaviour, it’s even more important to be able to talk to Xi.”