An aerial photo taken on November 3, 2020 shows the container dock of Yangshan Port in Shanghai, East China. Photo: Xinhua

A Chinese international trade promotion agency on Wednesday announced plans to organize for a delegation of Chinese entrepreneurs to visit the US in July, as trade exchanges are seeing signs of improving after top commerce officials in the world's two largest economies held "candid" discussions on trade ties last week.

According to a notice on the official WeChat account of the China Chamber of International Commerce (CCOIC), the delegation will investigate the business environment and trade and investment opportunities in Washington, New Jersey, North Carolina and South Carolina. It will also attend local bilateral economic and trade activities, visit the government and various associations, and communicate with local businesses.

The seven-day visit, which runs from July 24 to July 30, aims to "further strengthen the ties between the Chinese and American business communities and promote practical cooperation between enterprises," read the notice.

Last week, China's commerce minister met with the US commerce secretary and US trade representative in the US and held "candid" talks, in a move that Chinese analysts said could be a prelude to further high-level engagement. They said it could also pave the way for China-US trade and economic ties to play a stronger role in improving frayed bilateral relations.

Some top US CEOs have been visiting China recently. On Tuesday, Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk kicked off a visit to China with a meeting with the country's foreign minister in Beijing, marking his return to the electric carmaker's largest production hub for the first time in three years.

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Qin Gang told Musk that China will continue to steadfastly promote high-level opening-up and is committed to creating a market-oriented and international business environment for enterprises from various countries, including Tesla.

Musk said Tesla objects to "decoupling" and is willing to further expand its business in China, according to a statement published on the website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday.

JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon and Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan are also in China this week, according to media reports.

China and the US are important trading partners and sources of investment for each other. As the largest developing country and the largest developed country in the world, China and the US are highly complementary in natural resources, human resources, markets, capital and technology, the CCOIC said.

Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and the US, the economic and trade relations between the two sides have developed rapidly, the agency noted. The fields of cooperation have also been continuously expanded and the interdependence has continued to deepen.

"China and the US have been maintaining the necessary communication, but the key is that the US cannot engage in communication and cooperation with China while continuing to hurt China's interests," Mao Ning, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, said on Friday, noting that the US should meet China halfway to bring China-US relations back to the right track of sound and steady growth.

In 2022, the bilateral trade in goods between China and the US reached $759.427 billion, an increase of 0.6 percent over 2021. China's exports to the US last year reached $581.783 billion, an increase of 1.2 percent, while China's imports from the US were worth $177.644 billion, down 1.1 percent.

Global Times