The News
Beijing intensified its efforts to court foreign businesses, with China’s premier seeking to reassure giant firms like Apple and Boeing of stability and business-friendly policies.
In a speech to dozens of top executives at the China Development Forum, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said that Beijing would “adhere to the correct direction of economic globalization,” practice “genuine multilateralism,” and resist “protectionism,” in an apparent swipe at US trade policies, according to the Chinese state media agency, Xinhua.
Faced with deflation, elevated unemployment, and sluggish economic growth, Chinese officials have turned to private businesses for growth.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping met with domestic tech firms earlier this year, and the focus is now shifting to international companies: One analyst told Nikkei that the authorities were “doing all they can to help stabilize expectations.”
Officials also released five employees of a US business intelligence firm arrested in 2023 amid a crackdown on foreign consultancies, while Xi himself is expected to meet with foreign business leaders on Friday.