Agencies
Chinese trade authorities are intensifying their efforts to win over global business leaders, aiming to reassure them about the economy’s future despite a downturn in consumer activity and renewed trade conflicts, meeting as many as three foreign executives early this week.
Since February, China’s commerce minister, vice commerce ministers and trade representatives welcomed at least 10 executives from multinational companies including Airbus, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, Honeywell and Swire.
The frequency of the meetings picked up toward the end of February after official data showed foreign direct investment (FDI) plummeted 27.1% in local currency terms in 2024 from the year earlier, the most since the 2008 global financial crisis.
The meetings also came as tit-for-tat tariffs with the U.S. escalated, showing Beijing’s eagerness to mend relations with global business leaders to fend off disruptions sparked by tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.
“A stable, healthy and sustainable China-U.S. economic and trade relationship is in the fundamental interest of both countries, and also benefits global companies,” Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen told PepsiCo Chairman Ramon Laguarta on Tuesday.
“The essence of economic and trade relations between China and the U.S. is mutual benefit and win-win,” according to a ministry statement on Wednesday.
Wang Wentao, the commerce minister, met Airbus’s CEO Guillaume Faury and Swire Group’s CEO Merlin Swire on Monday.
He also met Christopher Boerner, board chair and CEO of the American biopharmaceutical company Bristol Myers Squibb on March 10, and Michael Voigt, CEO of German spice and condiment producer Hela Group on March 4.
