China’s nationalist leader Xi Jinping has called for closer trade ties with the US during a meeting with top American business leaders in Beijing amid a steady improvement in relations.
American business, strategic and academic communities met the Chinese leader at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing Trade and tariffs have increasingly drawn attention in the run-up to the US presidential election, and the Biden administration has shown little sign of moderating punitive measures against Chinese imports imposed by his predecessor and assumed rival in the November polls, Donald Trump.
At the same time, scores of foreign firms including Apple rely on China-based manufacturers as key links in their supply chains, along with the country’s 1.3 billion consumers for a high percentage of their global sales.