Li beckons US firms to invest in China

Premier Li Keqiang meets with US delegation who were attending the ninth round of the China-US CEO and Former Senior Officials' Dialogue in Beijing. [WU ZHIYI / CHINA DAILY]

US companies are welcome to continue investing in China and seize opportunities brought by the nation's fast-growing service industry and efforts to upgrade the manufacturing sector, Premier Li Keqiang told a visiting US delegation on Tuesday.

By doing so, both countries can promote dynamic balance in economic and trade cooperation to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes, he told 15 US representatives, who were attending the ninth round of the China-US CEO and Former Senior Officials' Dialogue in Beijing.

The annual dialogue, jointly hosted by the US Chamber of Commerce and the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, alternates between Beijing and Washington and serves as a successful element of track-II, or informal, diplomacy. Li met with visiting US representatives attending the sixth such event in July 2014 in Beijing.

Common interests of both countries far override differences for the world's largest developing and developed economies, Li said. The two presidents have reached consensus to boost a stable development of bilateral ties, and both nations can settle discrepancies through dialogues, he said.

Economic and trade cooperation is a vital cornerstone for China-US ties, Li said. China supports free trade and encourages bidirectional open markets as well as fair competition, he said.

"We will further ease market access and prioritize the business environment, which will increase China's economic competitiveness and endow consumers with more choices. We would like to strengthen exchanges with leading businessmen in the US, sending a positive signal for further cooperation and projecting a stable expectation to the market," he added.

US representatives agreed that a stable and smooth development of bilateral ties is vital to both countries and to the planet. US companies are optimistic about the prospects and opportunities of the Chinese market, paying great attention to China's reform and development agendas in addition to its opening-up measures. They also said they will be committed to boosting mutual understanding and equal opening-up to create more chances for employment and economic growth.

Both countries share strong interests in fields such as trading agricultural goods and finance, which demands wisdom from both sides to further cooperation, Zeng Peiyan, chairman of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges, and former vice-premier, said at the event's opening ceremony. Such a track-II dialogue can boost communication between the two countries, he said.

Myron Brilliant, executive vice-president of the US Chamber of Commerce, said some achievements have been made since the 100-day plan on trade cooperation was agreed to in April, but there is still work ahead. Both sides will assess the plan in July. He said mutual trust should be strengthened in the future.

Zhong Nan contributed to this story.

huyongqi@chinadaily.com.cn