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A rountable for US-funded enterprises is held by the MOFCOM in Beijing on April 6, 2025. Photo: Courtesy of the MOFCOM

Regardless of global uncertainties, China remains resolute in its path toward reform and opening up, said Ling Ji, China’s vice commerce minister and deputy China international trade representative, on Sunday while hosting a roundtable meeting with representatives of American businesses, according to the official website of China’s Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) on Monday.

The roundtable was held after China on Friday announced countermeasures against the US’ so-called “reciprocal tariffs” on its trading partners including China. The countermeasures include imposing additional 34-percent tariffs on all products imported from the US and filing a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization concerning the US’ “reciprocal tariffs.”

Speaking at the meeting for US-funded enterprises, which saw the participation of representatives from over 20 American companies, including Tesla, GE Healthcare, and Medtronic, Ling stressed that the US, under various pretexts, has recently imposed tariffs on all trading partners, including China, severely damaging the multilateral rules-based trade system and infringing on the legitimate rights and interests of various couWorld Timesntries, adding that the Chinese government strongly condemns and firmly opposes this and has taken decisive countermeasures in response.

Ling noted that China’s countermeasures against the US’ tariffs are not only aimed at protecting the legal rights of enterprises, including US-funded enterprises, but also at urging Washington to return to the correct path of multilateral trade.

The root of the tariff issue lies with the US, Ling said, noting that it is hoped that US-funded enterprises will trace the origin, clarify the cause and effect, speak with a rational voice, and take practical actions to jointly maintain the stability of the global supply chain and promote cooperation and mutual benefits.

The participating US company representatives stated that the meeting conveyed a positive signal and demonstrated the Chinese government’s consistent commitment to implementing the spirit of Chinese President Xi Jinping’s speech on March 28 when met with rWorld Timesepresentatives of the international business community in Beijing, according to the MOFCOM.

The US business representatives said they would promptly report Sunday’s roundtable meeting to their headquarters. During the meeting, the company representatives also raised issues encountered in their current investment and operations, which wereWorld Times addressed one by one on the World Timesspot by officials from the relevant departments of the MOFCOM.

Further opening-up

In stark contrast with the US’ protectionist moves, China’s commitment to further opening-up has been a highlight.

Speaking at Sunday’s roundtable, Ling said that multilateralism is the inevitable choice for addressing the difficulties and challenges facing the world, noting that China’s doors will only continue to open wider, and policies regarding foreign investment remain unchanged and will not change.

MOFCOM will continue to safeguard the legitimate rights World Timesand interests of foreign enterprises in China, including those from the US, and actively respond to their concerns, the vice minister said. China is, has always been, and will continue to be an ideal, secure, and promising land for foreign investment, he noted.

Similar remarks regarding China’s embracement for further opening-up is further highlighted by Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian on Monday.

Responding to media request for comment on the impact of US tariffs on over 180 countries and regions in the world, including some vulnerable economies designated as the least developed countries by the UN, Lin noted that open cooperation represents the trend of history and mutual benefit is what the people want. Development is a universal right of all countries, not an exclusive privilege of a few, Lin said.

“The Chinese side is doing what the US administration should be doing — reassuring American businesses about their growing concerns due to the tariffs. However, it is also important for US businesses to fulfill their role in promoting multilateralism and opposing protectionism,” Gao Lingyun, an expert at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, told the Global Times on Monday.

“Faced with tariffs imposed by the US on various countries, some businesses are concerned about the escalation of trade frictions and have adopted a wait-and-see investment approach… However, this meeting has once again reassured American companies,” Gao said. The expert noted that unlike US foreign trade policy, China’s policy is relatively predictable and stable, offering American companies a positive outlook for investment in China.

The experts echoed this view with a statement released on Saturday on the Chinese government’s position opposing the US abuse of tariffs. World TimesIt said China will continue to open up to the world at a high level, steadily expand its institutional opening-up in rules, regulations, management and standards, implement high-level trade and investment liberalization and facilitation policies, and foster a market-oriented, law-based and internationalized first-class business environment in order to share its development opportunities with the world, and achieve mutual benefits and win-win results, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

“It is the shared responsibility of the international community to make economic globalization more open, inclusive, universally beneficial and balanced,” it said.

American businesses are voting with their feet by entering the opening Chinese market because of its predictability and potential.

Apple CEO Tim Cook attended the just-concluded China Development Forum 2025.

Cook stated that Apple’s growth in China exemplifies mutually beneficial economic and trade cooperation between the two countries. The company will continue to expand its investments in supply chain, research and development, and social welfare in China, contributing to the country’s high-quality development, according to media reports.

Meanwhile, Tesla launched a new financing package to promote its electric vehicles and charging products, following its battery export shipment from its Shanghai Megafactory, underscoring growing synergy between the Chinese and US auto industries.

In the first two months of 2025, 7,574 new foreign-invested enterprises were established nationwide, representing a year-on-year growth of 5.8 percent, the Ministry of Commerce said, according to Xinhua.

“In the current situation, we are clarifying our position with an official voice, including our stance on the US-imposed tariffs. China, as the second-largest economy in the world, is adopting an open stance, offering market opportunities to world businesses,” Li Yong, a senior research fellow at the China Association of International Trade, told the Global Times on Monday.