Voice of America
26 May 2023, 11:35 GMT+10
The top Chinese and U.S. business and trade officials met Thursday in Washington, an infrequent direct conversation between leaders of the world's two biggest economies.
The U.S. Commerce Department said in a statement Thursday that Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao and U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimond had "candid and substantive discussions on issues relating to the U.S.-China commercial relationship."
Thursday's meeting, the department said, "was part of ongoing efforts to maintain open lines of communication and responsibly manage" the U.S.-China relationship.
While U.S. President Joe Biden met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Bali last November, Thursday's trade talks in Washington were the first cabinet-level meeting in the U.S. capital between American and Chinese officials during the Biden administration.
Wang is in the United States for the 2023 APEC Ministers Responsible for Trade Meeting, in Detroit - a city in the U.S. state of Michigan - on Thursday and Friday.
Common concerns
In the Washington talks, China expressed its views on China-U.S. relations and issues of common concern, Shu Jueting, the Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson, told a regular briefing in Beijing.
On Monday, Wang met with representatives of U.S. firms in Shanghai, including Johnson & Johnson, 3M, Dow, Merck, and Honeywell, according to the ministry, telling them that 'China will continue to welcome U.S.-funded enterprises to develop in China and achieve win-win results.'
But China on Sunday declared U.S. chip manufacturer Micron a national security risk and banned the firm from selling its memory chips to key domestic industries. The ban followed a series of raids on American consultancies operating in China.
'De-risk' without 'decoupling'
Wang's trip to the U.S. follows a recent summit in Hiroshima, Japan, of the leaders of the Group of Seven leading industrialized countries, at which Biden and other G7 leaders took aim at China over 'economic coercion' and said they would 'de-risk' without 'decoupling' from the world's second-largest economy on an array of products.
'China hopes the G7 will not abuse trade and investment restrictions while saying that they will not seek to decouple from the country,' Shu said.
Wang met earlier in May with U.S. Ambassador to China Nicholas Burns in Beijing amid speculation about a visit from top U.S. officials. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a trip in February after the U.S. shot down a Chinese spy balloon that flew over sensitive military sites.
Raimondo and Blinken, as well as U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, have all expressed interest in visiting China.
Some information in this report came from Reuters
Get a daily dose of China National News news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to China National News.
More InformationNEW YORK, New York: U.S. stocks dived on Wednesday as investors and traders fretted about the passing of the budget bill by Congress...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. President Donald Trump said over the weekend that Walmart should eat the tariffs instead of blaming duties imposed...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The Trump administration is scrutinizing Apple's plans to partner with Chinese tech giant Alibaba to bring its artificial...
TOKYO, Japan: Nissan is reportedly considering shutting down two car assembly plants in Japan and several overseas factories, including...
NEW YORK, New York - U.S. stocks weakened across the board on Tuesday, led by the tech sector once more. I would say that the largest...
SAN FRANCISCO, California: Google One, Alphabet's subscription service that offers cloud storage and AI-powered features, has surpassed...
TOKYO, Japan: Nissan is reportedly considering shutting down two car assembly plants in Japan and several overseas factories, including...
BEIJING, China: China's sales of heavy trucks could be dominated by electric vehicles by 2028, with battery-powered models potentially...
MOSCOW, Russia: Russia has sentenced a 33-year-old Australian man to 13 years in a high-security prison for fighting with Ukrainian...
TOKYO, Japan: Japan's economy contracted for the first time in a year, shrinking at a faster pace than expected in the first quarter...
STOCKHOLM, Sweden: Sweden plans to propose that the European Union join the Pacific Rim trading bloc, the CPTPP, aiming to create the...
(250521) -- NAIROBI, May 21, 2025 (Xinhua) -- An antelope grazes under a viaduct of the Nairobi-Malaba Standard Gauge Railway in Nairobi...