Chinese President Xi Jinping is preparing a large business delegation to accompany him on his planned visit to Washington, according to two sources familiar with the matter, in an unusual move amid US scepticism over Chinese investment and strained ties between Beijing and private businesses.
Xi rarely travels abroad with corporate executives. Many Chinese business leaders fell out of favour following Beijing’s regulatory crackdowns on the technology, education and property sectors that began in 2020.
The business delegation for the September 24 summit has not previously been reported. Reuters could not determine which executives would be included.
A White House official said the administration was not tracking a Chinese CEO delegation, without explaining what was meant by “tracking”.
One source familiar with discussions said the move was aimed partly at signalling China’s willingness to support investment and commercial ties with the United States, while potentially offering the White House some economic gains ahead of the midterm elections.
Chinese companies have faced increasing scrutiny over their US investments and business operations in recent years.
Washington has imposed a 100% tariff on imported Chinese electric vehicles, banned imports of foreign drones, routers and robots, and forced the divestiture of TikTok’s US operations.
The United States has also placed major Chinese technology firms on the Entity List of companies and organisations considered threats to national security, as well as on a Pentagon blacklist.
A different approach from 2015
Xi last brought a sizeable business contingent to the United States in 2015, when the group included Alibaba founder Jack Ma, Tencent founder Pony Ma, as well as executives from Chinese banks and state-owned enterprises.
During that visit, China signed a $38 billion agreement covering 300 Boeing aircraft. Xi also met US technology executives, including Apple’s Tim Cook, Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
By contrast, US President Donald Trump has travelled to China with large delegations of American business executives, including during visits in 2017 and May this year, as US companies sought greater access to Chinese markets.
Trump took 18 American executives, including Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Elon Musk, to China in May, according to the sources.
“My sense is that the Chinese… are going to be more intentional about the role of these business people in having them join the delegation,” said Scott Kennedy, a Chinese business expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
He said the participation of executives could prove “really valuable”.
Kennedy contrasted the approach with the organisation of the US delegation in May, which he said was assembled at short notice and whose executives were “more wallflowers than serious participants”.
The US Treasury declined to comment. The Office of the US Trade Representative and the State Department did not respond to Reuters’ requests for comment. China’s commerce ministry also did not immediately respond.
China’s foreign ministry said the two countries remain in communication over their leaders’ planned interactions this year, without providing further details.
Summit expectations remain modest
The two countries announced formal mechanisms in May to manage trade and investment ties. However, three sources briefed on the matter said the Board of Investment was unlikely to produce significant deliverables at the summit because of the challenging environment for Chinese investment in the United States.
Expectations for the summit remain modest, with limited prospects for major breakthroughs, the sources said.
Beijing and Washington also remain divided over which products should qualify as “non-sensitive” under the Board of Trade, according to the three sources.
Around 10 categories of “non-sensitive” goods are being discussed for inclusion, although this could change as the summit approaches.
Reaching an agreement on the Board of Trade is among the main US priorities for the summit, along with securing more rare earth export licences for US companies, the sources said.
A US official said the administration continued to press Chinese counterparts to address China’s lack of compliance with an agreement announced in Busan in October that secured a one-year trade truce, pausing some export controls and tariffs, as well as other bilateral concerns.
Beijing has pressed for further tariff relief. China’s commerce ministry said in July that both sides were exploring reciprocal tariff reductions covering $30 billion worth of products.
While the US Supreme Court struck down China-related tariffs imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act in February, Washington subsequently introduced a 10% global import tariff.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Thursday that both countries would make “some announcements on agriculture and non-tariff barriers” during the summit, without providing specifics.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Greer and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng will meet in early September to discuss summit deliverables, four sources told Reuters. Reuters could not determine the exact date or location of the talks.
