Xi Jinping Opens Arms to US Companies Late, Promises "Global Business Environment Creation"

No Specific Mention at Previous Business Dinner
Attendees: "No Concessions from Seup to Retain Investors"
"Disappointed to Miss Opportunity to Reassure Companies"

Chinese President Xi Jinping opened his arms to the overseas business community, promising a friendly investment environment. This appears to be a response to the dissatisfaction of companies, as he did not mention trade or investment during a previous local business dinner.

According to major foreign media including Bloomberg on the 16th (local time), President Xi stated in a written speech at the CEO Summit held in California, USA, "China will create a world-class business environment" and "improve mechanisms to protect the rights of international investors." However, it is reported that Xi, who was expected to attend the forum in person, replaced his schedule with a written speech that day.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In his speech, President Xi emphasized, "We will take warmer measures such as improving policies for foreigners entering and staying in China and removing barriers in services like finance, healthcare, and electronic payments," adding, "All of this is designed to make it easier for foreign companies to invest and operate in China."

Earlier, Xi attended a dinner with American businesspeople but reportedly did not make remarks that would boost confidence in investing in China. He said, "The most important first question for us is whether we are enemies or partners," and added, "If we view the other side as a major competitor, the most significant geopolitical challenge, and an impending threat, it will only lead to policy decisions and actions based on misinformation and misjudgments, resulting in unwanted outcomes." He also hinted at the possibility of sending a giant panda to the U.S. as a friendly envoy, which was met with applause.

However, according to attendees, Xi did not mention any specific investment improvement plans or trade-related topics during the dinner. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported, "During his first visit to the U.S. in six years, President Xi made no concessions to win back American companies and investors," stating that he devoted the allotted time to seeking help from U.S. companies to ease tensions between the two countries and emphasized the potential for cooperation.

Andy Rossman, an investment strategist at Matthews Asia asset management, told WSJ, "I was disappointed that President Xi missed the opportunity to address the U.S. business community’s concerns about the business environment in China or to share his thoughts on how domestic (Chinese) economic policies might evolve over the next few quarters." Another senior U.S. business executive pointed out, "President Xi gave no hints about concessions to companies or investments related to the Chinese economy," and indirectly criticized by saying, "His speech was the ultimate propaganda."

WSJ also noted that Xi’s remarks contrasted with those of U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo at the same event, who said, "We want strong trade with China. We will protect what needs to be protected and promote what needs to be promoted." It was also mentioned that few Chinese entrepreneurs attended the dinner event, and American big tech entrepreneurs such as Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta (formerly Facebook), were absent.

Meanwhile, prior to the business dinner, major foreign media speculated that President Xi would engage in investment attraction activities at this event. One of the indicators measuring foreign direct investment (FDI), direct investment liabilities, recorded a deficit of $11.8 billion (approximately 15.5 trillion KRW) in China in the third quarter. This was the first time this data recorded a negative figure since the Chinese foreign exchange authorities began compiling it in 1998. According to the Ministry of Commerce, the actual amount of foreign capital used in China from January to September this year was 919.97 billion yuan (approximately 164.5 trillion KRW), down 8.4% compared to the previous year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.