Here's a fun thing about summits: the guest list is often the whole story. And right now, the guest list for Xi Jinping's Washington visit is looking a little shaky.
Disagreements over potential U.S. investments have cast uncertainty over whether Chinese business leaders will actually join President Xi Jinping on his U.S. visit, according to the South China Morning Post.
The sticking point is the Board of Investment. Unresolved differences between the U.S. and China over the body, particularly around potential Chinese investments in the U.S., have cast doubts on the delegation's participation. The investment forum, established following the May summit between Xi and President Donald Trump in Beijing, has remained stalled.
There's more friction than just the forum itself. The publication also reported that poor logistics and a lack of formal engagement with Chinese businesses visiting Washington have added to the uncertainty. China sees this as a break from reciprocity, expecting the arrangements offered to U.S. businesses in May to be matched during Xi's Washington visit.
Still, not everyone is writing off the trip. One source still expects a Chinese delegation to arrive, pointing to the presence of U.S. business leaders at the state dinner at the White House. The delegation is anticipated to include figures from prominent Chinese firms such as electric vehicle maker BYD Company Limited (OTC:BYDDF), battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL), and smart manufacturing giant Xiaomi.
White House did not immediately respond to MarketDash's request for comments.
Trump-Xi Dinner Draws Tech Leaders
Earlier this month, reports suggested that Xi was planning to bring a large business delegation with him for his U.S. summit with Trump.
Elon Musk, Sam Altman and other major tech executives, including Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN) founder Jeff Bezos, Apple Inc.'s (NASDAQ:AAPL) former CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia Corp. (NASDAQ:NVDA) CEO Jensen Huang and Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) CEO Sundar Pichai, are expected at a White House state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, USA Today reported. Their attendance comes as the Trump administration and China discuss potential AI safety cooperation ahead of the summit.
Chinese Automakers Face US Entry Hurdles
Ahead of the summit, Washington has sent mixed signals about Chinese automakers investing in the U.S., amid opposition from American automakers and lawmakers. The President initially dismissed reports of a framework allowing Chinese automakers into the U.S. as a "phony rumor," but later said he might support their entry if they build vehicles domestically and hire American workers. He opposed Chinese automakers manufacturing in Mexico and shipping vehicles across the U.S. border.
Meanwhile, in April, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said the Trump administration would maintain Biden-era restrictions on Chinese vehicle software and hardware over data-security concerns, with hardware limits taking effect in 2029.
According to Reuters, General Motors Co. (NYSE:GM) CEO Mary Barra and Stellantis NV (NYSE:STLA) CEO Antonio Filosa are expected to attend the Trump-Xi state dinner at the White House on Thursday.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by MarketDash editors.
