Tesla CEO Musk Meets China’s Number Two Official in Beijing

AFP/APP

Beijing: Tech billionaire and Tesla CEO Elon Musk met in Beijing on Sunday with China’s number two official, Premier Li Qiang, who promised the country would “always” be open to foreign firms.

 Musk — one of the world’s richest people — arrived in China earlier the same day on his second trip in less than a year to the world’s biggest market for electric vehicles.

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said that during their meeting, Li had promised the country would do more to help foreign firms.

“China’s very large-scale market will always be open to foreign-funded firms,” Li was quoted as saying.

“China will stick to its word and will continue working hard to expand market access and strengthen service guarantees.”

Beijing would also provide foreign companies with “a better business environment” so “that firms from all over the world can have peace of mind while investing in China”, Li added.

Musk has extensive business interests in China and his most recent visit was in May and June of last year.

Tesla did not respond to AFP’s requests for confirmation of Musk’s visit, or share his itinerary for the trip.

CCTV quoted him as praising the “hardworking and intelligent Chinese team” at his Tesla Gigafactory in Shanghai during his meeting with Li.

“Tesla is willing to take the next step in deepening cooperation with China to achieve more win-win results,” Musk reportedly added.