After hosting U.S. Vice President Joseph Biden, Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping, and 22 CEOs from the United States and China at the  U.S.-China CEO Roundtable on February 14, U.S. Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue issued the following statement:

Today was a great opportunity for business leaders to exchange views on bilateral trade and investment opportunities and discuss challenges with the vice presidents and top officials of both countries.

The U.S. Chamber deeply appreciates the time taken by Vice Presidents Xi and Biden and other government leaders to listen to both sides.  

We continue to believe this bilateral economic relationship is enormously important and are firmly committed to advancing common understanding of the opportunities and challenges.

Today’s commitments on future structural reforms, technology transfer, insurance and export finance are a good start and will help to foster trust as we move forward.

Though not perfect, the United States is the most open major economy for trade and investment in the world.  However, we continue to urge our government to beware of protectionist pressures and the politicization of trade and investment issues.

While China remains a tremendous opportunity for U.S. exporters and investors, we also believe that increasing Chinese investment in the United States is good for our country, for our companies, and American workers.  The Chamber underscores its commitment to working with all of the stakeholders to advance two-way investment as well as to continue to promote China as a rapidly growing market for our exporters.

Part of realizing our shared objectives rests on China’s efforts to address a range of policies that create an unlevel playing field for American companies.  These include restrictions on investment, industrial policies that disadvantage U.S. firms, coerced technology transfer and cyber concerns, and slowly improving, but still lax IP protection and enforcement.

Above all, this dialogue is important for narrowing differences and making progress in this critical relationship.  Working together, U.S. and Chinese business can develop solutions that leverage the opportunities and address challenges to improve the economic prospects of both nations.