Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. Xie Feng addressed the 6th annual U.S.-China Business Forum held at … [+]
Ethan Covey for Forbes ChinaChina’s growth offers opportunities for businesses amid uncertain global economic conditions, the country’s ambassador told a forum in New York organized by Forbes China, the Chinese-language edition of Forbes.
“We are meeting at a challenging time,” said Ambassador Xie Feng, the country’s 13th ambassador to the United States. “Globally, demand is sluggish. Inflation is high. Debts are mounting. Geopolitical conflicts keep flaring up. Economic globalization is under headwinds, and the world openness index is declining,” he said.
“All these have made the world economic outlook less certain. In such a complex world, searching for opportunities is a common endeavor, and expanding and deepening cooperation is the best way forward,” Xie said in a video address to an audience of about 100 business representatives and leaders gathered at the Forbes on Fifth conference venue in Manhattan.
China’s economy – the world’s second largest — grew by 5% in the first half of 2024, —according to the IMF. That was below its pre-pandemic pace but among the fastest among the world’s largest economies. “This shows its resilience,” Xie said.
“China will continue to be the top contributor to global growth over the next five years. We expect the Chinese economy, with its bigger size and stronger dynamism, will inject greater impetus into the world economy,” he predicted.
As an example of the country’s consumer clout, Xie pointed to the launch this month of the Chinese video game Black Myth Wukong, based on its classic novel “Journey to the West.” “Within just one hour of its launch, its concurrent player count hit 1 million,and its collaboration merch quickly sold out,” Xie said.
“So you can see the huge consumption potential in the debut economy,” he noted, lauding the way in which the game integrates traditional Chinese culture with modern technology in a format that allows for global distribution.
Xie, 60, a career diplomat with earlier posts in the U.S., Hong Kong and Indonesia who became China’s 12th ambassador assigned to Washington in 2023, spoke against a backdrop of heightened geopolitical strains in the U.S.-China ties in connection with Russia’s invasion of the Ukraine and territorial claims in the South China Sea. Economic friction has risen from disagreement over Chinese industrial policy, which critics say is leading to excess capacity in industries such as autos and steel. Pending legislation in the U.S. would more deeply regulate sale of advanced technology with potential military applications.
The two sides have worked to keep geopolitics from overheating through meetings this week between China’s top diplomat, Wang Yi, and U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan in Beijing.
Xie noted that the business community on both sides “has always been an important participant and advocate of China-U.S. relations,” lauding recent visits to China by the U.S. China Business Council and CCPIT’s chairman to the United States, as well as investments by Tesla and Apple in China. “These have testified to our shared aspiration for more exchanges and cooperation,” he said.
“A major inspiration we can get from China-U.S. relations over the past 45 years is that when we work together, both countries and peoples will fare well; but when we turn against each other, both sides and the world will suffer,” Xie said.
“We are already deeply intertwined and basically inseparable from each other in the face of the new circumstances and challenges,” such as evolving scientific knowledge and industrial transformation, he said. “We need to both expand cooperation in traditional areas including economy, trade and agriculture, and nurture cooperation in new areas such as climate change and AI, so that both our countries and the world will come out as winners.”
Highlighting an upbeat message, Xie talked about a Communist Party leadership gathering this summer that laid out policy directions over the next five years. “The core message is: China’s journey of reform and opening-up will never stop,” he said. “So what does this mean to the United States and the world? The answer is simple: opportunity, opportunity, and opportunity.”
Other speakers included Wang Chaobin, chairman of Zhonglu Group; Hu Wei, chairman of the China General Chamber of Commerce USA; Steve Orlins; president of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations; Paul Triolo, partner for China and technology policy lead, Albright Stonebridge Group; Craig Allen, president of the U.S.-China Business Council; Sean Stein, chairman of the American Chamber of Commerce in China; and Che Lai Chang, managing director, East West Bank.
Additional speakers included Yue-Sai Kan, co-chair of the China Institute; Ken Jarrett, senior advisor of the Albright Stonebridge Group; Abby Li, communications and research director, China General Chamber of Commerce — USA; Tu Le, managing director of Sino Auto Insights; Bob Netherlander, CEO of Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment; Daniel Manwaring, CEO of IMAX China; Mick Merritt, COO of Signigture Services, Penn Medicine; and Jing Qian, managing director of the Center for China Analysis at the Asia Society Policy Institute; and Forbes China advisor Russell Flannery.
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