FirstFT: Xi Jinping tells US business leaders that China’s economy has not ‘peaked’

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Good morning. Xi Jinping met with US chief executives yesterday in Beijing, where he told them that China’s economy had not “peaked” and its growth prospects remained “bright” as the government sought to revive investor confidence.

The attendees included about 20 US business figures, among them Chubb’s Evan Greenberg, Blackstone’s Stephen Schwarzman and Qualcomm’s Cristiano Amon. According to state media, Xi insisted: “China’s reforms will not stall, and our opening up will not stop.”

The meeting comes amid growing concern among China’s trading partners that Beijing is investing heavily in manufacturing to overcome a deep property slowdown, leading to oversupply and potential dumping on international markets.

The American business leaders were in the capital this week to attend the China Development Forum. Here’s why one attendee said it felt “more like 2019” at Beijing’s annual business conference — plus more from Xi’s rare meeting with US CEOs.

• Related news: US Treasury secretary Janet Yellen has warned China not to flood the world with cheap clean-energy exports, saying they would distort markets and harm workers.

• Go deeper: Xi’s pivot towards high-technology manufacturing, rather than relying on incentives to boost consumer-led growth, is leading many to fear a flood of cheap exports. 

And here’s what else I’m keeping tabs on today:

• Economic data: Monthly industrial production figures are due from South Korea and Japan, while the latter also reports unemployment data for the month. The UK and US publish revised fourth-quarter GDP figures.

• Sam Bankman-Fried sentencing: The FTX founder will learn how much prison time he gets after being convicted on multiple counts of fraud and money laundering. Here’s how the cost of Bankman-Fried’s crimes will be counted at today’s sentencing.

• Art Basel Hong Kong 2024: The event is back to full strength after last year’s release from Covid restrictions provided a reboot. Check out our coverage of this week’s fair.

Five more top stories

1. The yen slumped against the dollar yesterday, pushing the currency towards its lowest level in 34 years and significantly raising the risk of market intervention by Japanese authorities. Finance minister Shunichi Suzuki stepped up his warnings that the government “would not rule out any steps against any excessive moves” in the yen.

• Opinion: Just three months ago, many analysts expected that 2024 would mark an inflection point for the yen after three years of the currency falling against the dollar. What went wrong with the forecasts?

2. Solid-state battery technology for electric cars is still years away from commercialisation with “a lot of showstoppers” blocking its development, said the head of the Chinese company that dominates the industry. The much-hyped technology does not work well enough, lacks durability and still has safety problems, CATL chief Robin Zeng told the FT.

3. The Biden administration has warned of a lengthy disruption to one of the US’s busiest ports, following the collapse of a Baltimore bridge after being struck by a container ship. Carmakers that use Baltimore — the US’s largest vehicle-import terminal — are rerouting shipments while insurance groups are bracing for billions of dollars of losses.

4. Amazon has committed a further $2.75bn to artificial intelligence start-up Anthropic as Big Tech’s race to dominate the booming AI sector intensifies. The Seattle-based company is increasing its bet on Anthropic even as regulatory scrutiny grows over concerns that deals between Big Tech and the most prominent AI start-ups may pose anti-competitive risks.

5. Exclusive: Bain Capital has promoted one of its top dealmakers in Asia to co-managing partner, the highest position at the asset manager. According to a letter to clients seen by the FT, the $180bn investment shop has appointed David Gross to jointly lead the business from April. Gross’s promotion comes as some of the pioneers of the $4tn private equity industry grapple with succession planning.

Data analysis

Tokyo’s commuters are packing trains again — but they have slightly more room to breathe. In Mexico City, increasing numbers are heading to work by bus, car and underground. And rush hours are picking up in cities from London to Berlin and Milan. Pandemic predictions that the daily journey to work would die off were greatly exaggerated, according to FT analysis. But commuting has changed in unexpected ways.

We’re also reading . . . 

Chart of the day

A quarter of electric vehicles sold in the EU this year will be made in China, as the country’s new entrants continue to take sales from European rivals, according to analysis from policy group Transport & Environment. 

Take a break from the news

Are we really ready to live forever? In an age of remarkable scientific advances, Stephen Cave reviews three new books that explore the prospects for living longer — and the challenges for society.

Additional contributions from Tee Zhuo and Gordon Smith