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US-China trade war
USEconomy, Trade & Business

ExclusiveUS-China ‘Board of Investment’ stalls before expected Trump-Xi meeting

President of US-China Business Council says neither side has ‘initiated consultation process’ or is ready yet for private sector discussions

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Chinese President Xi Jinping talks with US President Donald Trump at the Zhongnanhai compound during their summit in Beijing in May. They are set to meet again in Washington in September. Photo: AP Photo
Nayan Sethin Washington
The US-China Board of Investment, one of the key outcomes of the May summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, is unlikely to be among the deliverables for their expected meeting next month in Washington, according to the head of a leading bilateral business group.
“I’m not seeing evidence yet that that’s going to be a sizeable deliverable for the next summit,” Sean Stein, the president of the US-China Business Council, told the South China Morning Post.

“The US side and the Chinese side neither have really initiated the consultation process,” he said, adding that “it looks like neither side is ready yet for discussions with the private sector”.

In an email response to the South China Morning Post, the Chinese embassy in Washington said that economic and trade teams of both countries are “maintaining close communication regarding the relevant mechanisms”.

“We believe that the trade and investment councils will provide a platform for pragmatic discussions between the two countries on mutual concerns in the areas of trade and investment,” embassy spokesman Liu Chang said.

He added that the boards would help shift economic and trade consultations from “crisis response” to “mechanised management”.

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