Chinese Minister of Industry and Information Technology Li Lecheng met with a delegation led by Rajesh Subramaniam, Chairman of the Board of the U.S.-China Business Council (USCBC), in Beijing, encouraging more U.S. companies to deepen their roots in China. Minister Li emphasized that China will continue providing support for foreign-funded enterprises as always. He reiterated China's commitment to maintaining a fair, just, and open market competition environment, while safeguarding the legitimate rights and interests of all market participants. Li expressed the hope that the USCBC would help create favorable conditions for the healthy development of industrial cooperation and economic exchanges between China and the U.S. He encouraged more U.S. companies to invest in China, establish roots, actively participate in China's new industrialization process, and provide more competitive products and services, contributing to mutual benefits and win-win outcomes.
Representatives of several U.S. companies, including Thermo Fisher Scientific, Otis Worldwide and Apple, attended the meeting. The two sides exchanged views on equipment, intelligent manufacturing and other fields. Subramaniam expressed appreciation for the pragmatic measures implemented by the MIIT to support foreign-funded enterprises in China. He stated that the USCBC remains committed to promoting the healthy development of U.S.-China economic and trade relations, according to the MIIT statement. Ren Hongbin, Chairman of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), also met with the delegation, and the two sides exchanged views on issues such as promoting exchanges between the business communities of China and the U.S. and serving enterprises of the two countries, according to the CCPIT.
U.S. companies continue to expand their presence in the Chinese market. At the recently concluded third China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE), the number of participating countries and regions expanded from 55 in the first session to 75, with the number of U.S. exhibitors increasing by 15% compared with last year, remaining the highest among overseas exhibitors. In another example, the 1,000th Tesla Megapack energy storage system produced at its Shanghai Megafactory rolled off the assembly line and will be exported to Europe, the company told the Global Times. It took less than six months for Tesla's Shanghai Megafactory to produce 1,000 Megapacks. Coca-Cola highlighted its resilient performance in China, as it reported stronger growth in the Chinese market in its second-quarter results. The U.S. business delegation's visit serves as another signal that U.S. businesses hope to expand their presence and seek further cooperation in China – a gesture of goodwill, Huo Jianguo, Vice Chairman of the China Society for World Trade Organization Studies in Beijing, told the Global Times.
A report released by the USCBC on July 16 showed that 82% of U.S. companies in China reported a profit. Many said that uncertainties in China-U.S. relations and tariffs are their top concerns but the Chinese market remains vital.
