Tesla CEO Elon Musk shakes hands with China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang during a meeting in Beijing
Qin told Musk that China was"committed to creating a better market-oriented, rule-of-law-based and internationalized business environment" for foreign enterprises, the ministry said on its website.Musk's extensive business ties to China have raised eyebrows in Washington, withsaying in November that the executive's links to foreign countries were"worthy" of scrutiny.
Electric vehicles make up a quarter of car sales in China, the world's largest car market, and dozens of new models from domestic and Western brands were unveiled in April at the country's first auto show since COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. It has also acted as a major catalyst for a revolution in transportation, driving much of the industry's innovation efforts in moving away from the internal combustion engine towards electric vehicles. Tesla reported a drop in first-quarter earnings this year, with the company undertaking a series of price cuts in the face of competition from other automakers.