Michael Bloomberg’s New Economy Forum, a conference launched by the billionaire to debate how the shifting balance of power between the US and China affects business, has been invited to Beijing, months after the trade war between the countries forced the inaugural event to relocate to Singapore.
“The fact the meeting is taking place in Beijing is a positive sign and a sign China remains interested in a dialogue,” said Henry Kissinger, an adviser to the event. Mr Kissinger was Richard Nixon’s national security adviser, who laid the groundwork for the 1972 presidential visit that marked China’s opening to the west. “The Chinese leadership in my view are pleased with this process,” he said of the chance the forum would give for western business leaders to meet Chinese officials and chief executives.
Mr Bloomberg, owner of the eponymous financial information provider and former mayor of New York City, told the Financial Times he thought current trade tensions were “short-term stuff”. The 400 executives and officials from 60 countries due to attend November’s event were focused on longer-term trends, he said.