Xi meets China’s tech titans amid economic struggles
Chinese leader Xi Jinping met on Monday with executives from the country’s major tech companies amid domestic economic headaches and international trade conflicts, state media reported.
Present at the meeting were Alibaba co-founder Jack Ma, Huawei boss Ren Zhengfei and the founder of the Chinese electric car giant BYD, Wang Chuanfu.
Observers viewed the Beijing meeting as a signal of trust and support for private companies in the world’s second-largest economy.
China’s economy is struggling with weak consumption, partly due to a severe real estate crisis, while trade disputes with the US further threaten business.
It is unclear what Xi communicated to the business leaders. In the past, he has used such meetings to announce measures to support the private sector, observers note. China’s state-driven economy is closely intertwined with its political apparatus.
Senior cadres of the Communist Party, including Premier Li Qiang and Wang Huning, who is also part of the party’s inner leadership circle, attended the reception in the Great Hall of the People.
