Welcome to the 247th edition of Trade War.
In an effort to boost battered business sentiment and jumpstart investment, Xi Jinping is to meet top tech executives, including Alibaba’s Jack Ma. Buoyed by the explosion of interest in artificial intelligence, Alibaba shares have risen to their highest level in three years. And China’s share of companies in the private sector grew slightly last year but don’t expect it to last as confidence sags.
Foreign firms in China fear becoming collateral damage in the trade war. China saw its largest ever drop in foreign investment last year, with a record $168 billion pulled from the country. And why should foreign firms keep investing if private companies aren’t? asks Craig Allen, former president of the U.S.-China Business Council.
After the assault on USAID, Elon Musk is now attacking the National Endowment for Democracy (NED). And the world’s richest man has dismissed the Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Europe (RFE) as “radical left crazy people talking to themselves,” and called for their closure, in a post on his social media platform.
Notable/In depth
How the WTO became “irrelevant” for today’s turbulent tariff era
China is ready to step forward as Trump undermines US power, writes Stimson Center’s Yun Sun
Portuguese artist references the Tiananmen Tank Man with “Cybertruck Man: A cartoon in defiance of Musk”
Xi to meet tech titans including Jack Ma
In an effort to boost battered business sentiment and jumpstart investment, Xi Jinping is expected to meet top tech executives including Alibaba’s Jack Ma sometime this week.
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