Chinese Premier Li Qiang is making another pitch to foreign businesses in a high-profile speech Thursday, seeking to restore global confidence in the world’s No. 2 economy after years of punishing Covid restrictions and escalating US tensions.
(Bloomberg) — Chinese Premier Li Qiang is making another pitch to foreign businesses in a high-profile speech Thursday, seeking to restore global confidence in the world’s No. 2 economy after years of punishing Covid restrictions and escalating US tensions.
Li is set to deliver a keynote speech at the Boao Forum for Asia — billed as an Asian version of the World Economic Forum in Davos — as the event wraps up in the southern province of Hainan.
The four-day gathering comes as Beijing rolls out a charm offensive to court overseas business and investment and bolster its diplomatic efforts to portray China as a responsible geopolitical actor.
For foreign firms, operating in China in recent years hasn’t been easy. Many faced disruptions and supply chain logjams due to stringent Covid Zero controls, while consumer spending slumped and profits were squeezed.
More recently, US firms have faced more scrutiny for their business ties to China amid rising political tensions between the two countries.
The Boao event follows on the heels of the China Development Forum earlier this week in Beijing, where Li welcomed figures including Apple Inc.’s Tim Cook and Standard Chartered Plc’s Bill Winters. For many overseas executives, it was their first trip to China since it reopened its borders after three years.
A host of international leaders are attending this year’s Boao gathering, including Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, Spanish leader Pedro Sanchez and Malaysia’s Anwar Ibrahim.
Chinese leaders have in the past used the event to announce major steps to open the financial system, including the establishment and expansion of the stock connect program that links mainland exchanges with Hong Kong.
In a meeting with foreign executives earlier this week, Li urged them to take a long-term view amid economic challenges and vowed to continue opening up to global businesses.
While strained China-US relations rarely came up during the China Development Forum earlier this week, the mood at a closed door panel was “somber,” said Scott Kennedy, a China specialist at the Center for Strategic & International Studies.
At the session, which didn’t include Li or other senior officials, some Chinese participants complained about “a reflexive American opposition to China’s success,” while US participants expressed concern over an unintentional crisis erupting, Kennedy said.
Foreign companies are also having to contend with security risks. Japan is seeking the release of an employee of drugmaker Astellas Pharma Inc. who was recently taken into custody by Chinese authorities. Beijing has said a Japanese citizen was suspected of espionage.
Also, five local employees at the American due diligence firm Mintz Group were detained last week, according to the New York Times. The company “is suspected of engaging in unlawful business operations,” the Foreign Ministry in Beijing said.
The latest survey from the American Chamber of Commerce in China shows that the country is no longer one of the top three investment priorities for US firms. Almost half of US firms already in the market plan no new investments, according to the survey.
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