China touted its business potential at a meeting with Apple, Pfizer and other US companies
Kyiv • UNN
China's Deputy Prime Minister assured foreign companies' CEOs of the country's business potential. Investment banks cautiously improved their forecasts for China for 2025, but did not reach the official growth forecast.
Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng tried to reassure foreign CEOs of the country's business potential, describing the economy as quite resilient, while global investment banks cautiously raised their forecasts for the country for 2025, Reuters reports, UNN writes.
Details
Vice Premier He met with the heads of Apple, Pfizer, Mastercard, Cargill and others on Sunday and held meetings with pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly, medical device company Medtronic and specialty glass manufacturer Corning, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.
Beijing is seeking to stabilize foreign investment and attract new capital as policymakers try to boost domestic consumption to offset the impact of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.
Several global investment banks have acknowledged China's recent policy support measures, with Nomura, ANZ, Citi and Morgan Stanley raising their economic growth forecasts for the country for 2025 by 50 basis points since last week.
However, none of them reached China's official growth forecast of 5%, citing U.S. tariffs and domestic deflationary pressures.
"China will continue to improve the business environment and welcome more investment from multinational companies in China, sharing development opportunities," He told business leaders, describing China's economy as "highly resilient" and "full of vitality."
Foreign CEOs are attending the China Development Forum in Beijing on Sunday and Monday, and some of them are expected to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday, Reuters sources said.
On Monday, Cargill CEO Brian Sikes also met with China's Minister of Commerce.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang, speaking at the forum on Sunday, called on countries to open their markets to combat "growing instability and uncertainty" and pledged more active macroeconomic policies.
U.S. Republican Senator Steve Daines, a staunch supporter of President Donald Trump, met with Li on Sunday with seven senior executives from American companies. Danes called the meeting an opportunity for them to convey their views on the business environment in China to Li.
This year, about 86 company representatives from 21 countries came to the business forum, with American companies accounting for the largest group of participants, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
However, a source said that compared to last year, there are fewer American CEOs at the forum.
"We certainly have confidence in China's development. We have been investing steadily in China for decades and will continue to invest in it for decades to come," Corning CEO Wendell Weeks told the state-run Global Times.
U.S. direct sales firm Amway is monitoring the impact of U.S. tariffs, but its CEO Michael Nelson said the company is focused on the future of the Chinese market, the newspaper reports.
Apple, which relies heavily on China for the production and assembly of its products, announced on Monday the creation of a new 720 million yuan ($99 million) clean energy fund to expand its clean energy production capacity in China.
Addition
The Trump administration imposed a 20% tariff on all Chinese goods since taking office in January, accusing Beijing of not doing enough to stop the flow of fentanyl into the United States.
