The meeting, in which about two dozen executives took part, marked the first high-level meeting between foreign corporations and a senior Beijing official since Donald Trump won a second four-year term. — Photo by Sumudu Mohottige on Unsplash
Apple Inc. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook joined more than 20 corporate leaders in discussions with China’s premier Monday, as global companies grapple with potential trade disruptions and economic uncertainty.
Cook, who’s visiting the country for at least the third time this year, joined top executives of global firms including Rio Tinto Plc, Corning Inc. and Charoen Pokphand Group in a meeting with Li Qiang, state media reported. Chinese corporate chiefs including the heads of Lenovo Group and ICBC also attended the event, which discussed supply chain and trade issues.
The meeting, in which about two dozen executives took part, marked the first high-level meeting between foreign corporations and a senior Beijing official since Donald Trump won a second four-year term. Companies worldwide are bracing for the president-elect’s threat to hike tariffs on Chinese goods.
The gathering of business leaders, which took place before a supply chain expo in Beijing starting Tuesday, was earlier reported by Bloomberg News.
It went on for over an hour and felt pretty scripted, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing a private event. Li, at one point, quoted Adam Smith’s view that the propensity to truck, barter and exchange was inherent in human nature, the people said.
Li also told the executives to send any feedback to him, saying he would take it seriously, one of the people said. The premier didn’t mention Trump or tariffs, another person said.
In a separate report by the official Xinhua News Agency, Li said Beijing is against decoupling and urged efforts to maintain the stability of the global supply chain. He also vowed to continue developing the Chinese economy.
Disruptions to trade are a source of concern especially for Apple, which makes the majority of its iPhones through Foxconn in the country and counts China as its biggest market after the US.
The Apple CEO was in the capital just last month, when he promised to keep investing in the country and also underscored its vital role in the iPhone maker’s global operations.
Cook on Monday made it a point to emphasize the importance of the Chinese supply chain during brief remarks carried by a social media account linked to state broadcaster China Central Television. "I value them very highly. We could not do what we do without them,” Cook said in response to a question about Apple’s Chinese partners.
Beijing this year has taken a more active role in encouraging foreign investment, as the economy remains mired in a post-Covid funk.
AmCham China – represented by President Michael Hart at the meeting with Li – said the discussions focused on opportunities to strengthen supply chain resilience and expand bilateral and multilateral engagement. This is the first time that AmCham China has met with a Chinese premier since May 2022.
Li last held a roundtable with foreign business executives ahead of the China International Import Expo in Shanghai earlier this month. Since Trump’s election victory, he has picked several China hawks for top posts in his new administration.
Also present at the meeting were Thai billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont, Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd. Chairman Matsumoto Masayoshi, Robin Zeng of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., and Li Dongsheng, the chairman of TCL Technology Group Corp.
Over the weekend, Nvidia Corp. honcho Jensen Huang was in Hong Kong receiving an honorary doctorate. – Bloomberg
