Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with U.S. executives as investment falls

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with U.S. business leaders at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday as the government tries to attract foreign investors and international companies to ensure the impact of the new rules.

Foreign direct investment fell 8% in 2023 as investor concerns over espionage laws, exit bans and raids on consulting and due diligence firms grew as Beijing looks to boost growth in the world’s second-largest economy.

Despite Chinese leaders’ public overtures to foreign investors, Xi Jinping’s growing focus on national security has left many companies unsure of where they might be crossing the line.

“China’s development has gone through various difficulties and challenges to achieve today’s achievements,” Xi said, according to state media.

“in the past, [China] It will not collapse because of the ‘China Collapse Theory’, and it will not reach its peak because of the ‘China Peak Theory’. ”

Stephen Schwarzman, co-founder and chief executive of private equity firm Blackstone, Raj Subramaniam, the head of US express delivery giant FedEx, and Cristiano Amon, the boss of chipmaker Qualcomm, are among the roughly 20 all-male American team.

The meeting with Xi, organized by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, the National Committee on U.S.-China Business Council and the Asia Society think tank, lasted about 90 minutes, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.

The source declined to be named because they were not authorized to speak to the media and did not immediately comment on the content of the discussions. The National Committee on U.S.-China Relations and the Asia Society did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the meeting.

A statement from the U.S.-China Business Council said attendees “stressed the importance of rebalancing China’s economy through increased consumption and encouraged the government to further address cross-border data flows, government procurement, intellectual property rights, and increased regulatory transparency. The long-standing problem” predictability. ”

The United States and China are gradually re-engaging after relations between the two economic superpowers hit their lowest point in years amid conflicts over trade policy, the future of democratically-ruled Taiwan and territorial claims in the South China Sea.