By
Megan Cerullo
Reporter, MoneyWatch
Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News 24/7 to discuss her reporting.
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Updated on: May 14, 2026 / 11:23 PM EDT
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Chinese President Xi Jinping told U.S. CEOs traveling with President Trump to China that it will open further to American business, a key goal for corporate leaders eager to expand their presence in the world’s second-largest economy.
Xi spoke with the delegation of chief executives, which includes Apple CEO Tim Cook, Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, according to a statement on Thursday from the Chinese Foreign Ministry. The executives — whose combined net worth approaches $1 trillion — lead companies with major interests in China, despite years of trade disputes between the world’s two largest economies.
China’s pledge to welcome more foreign business comes after years of escalating trade tensions with the U.S., including the Trump administration’s move last year to raise tariffs on Chinese imports to as much as 125% after Mr. Trump said China “was taking us for a ride.”
Yet U.S. companies continue to see China’s expanding middle class and massive consumer base as critical growth markets, even as it has become harder to wring profits from financially struggling consumers in the U.S. and other developed economies.
The White House said that several American business leaders participated in a portion of a broader meeting between U.S. and Chinese officials.
“The two sides discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation between countries, including expanding market access for American businesses into China and increasing Chinese investment,” a White House official said in a readout of the meeting.
The CEOs accompanying Mr. Trump include:
- Cristiano Amon, CEO of Qualcomm
- Tim Cook, CEO of Apple
- Lawrence Culp Jr., CEO of GE Aerospace
- Larry Fink, CEO of BlackRock
- Jane Fraser, CEO of Citigroup
- Jensen Huang, CEO of Nvidia
- Ryan McInerney, CEO of Visa
- Sanjay Mehrotra, CEO of Micron Technology
- Michael Miebach, CEO of Mastercard
- Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX
- Kelly Ortberg, CEO of Boeing
- Stephen Schwarzman, CEO of Blackstone
- Brian Sikes, CEO of Cargill
- David Solomon, CEO of Goldman Sachs
- Jacob Thaysen, CEO of Illumina
Signs of conciliation?
Based on the CEOs attending the talks, China could take several steps to ease economic tensions with the U.S., according to analysts with Eurasia Group, a political risk consultancy.
“We continue to expect the two sides to announce increased trade and tariff adjustments in non-sensitive sectors,