By Laurie Chen
BEIJING, Sept 18 (Reuters) – Washington and Beijing are finalising a group of Chinese business leaders to join President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit to Washington, three sources familiar with the matter said, potentially including companies facing US regulatory scrutiny as they seek greater market access.
Final invitations will go out to companies in the coming days, the sources said. The State Department is expected to green-light US visas for the delegation, one of them added.
Leading Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD, smartphone maker Xiaomi, which has also expanded into EVs, battery giants CATL and Gotion, consumer electronics manufacturer Hisense, automotive parts supplier Wanxiang Group and state-owned Bank of China are among companies under consideration, two of the sources and four other people briefed on the matter said.
Taking a large business delegation to the US would be an unusual move, given Washington’s wariness of Chinese investment and Beijing’s tighter oversight of private enterprise.
The delegation’s members have yet to be finalised, the sources said.
BYD declined to comment. CATL, Xiaomi, Wanxiang, Hisense, Gotion and Bank of China did not respond to requests for comment.
Chinese companies have been told to prepare, pending confirmation at this weekend’s meeting between US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, the sources said. They declined to be identified because the plans are not public.
A US Treasury spokesperson referred Reuters’ questions to the White House, which did not respond. China’s foreign ministry said it had no information in response to Reuters’ questions. The commerce ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
CHINESE COMPANIES IN DELEGATION FACE ISSUES IN US
Xi plans to bring companies facing US sanctions, blacklists or other regulatory pressure, one source said, mirroring Trump’s decision to bring executives from U.S. firms under Chinese scrutiny on his Beijing visit in May.
A Biden-era rule will bar China-linked manufacturers from selling new connected passenger vehicles in the United States from model year 2027, including vehicles made in the country, while restricting Chinese software and hardware in such cars. Washington also imposes a 100% tariff on Chinese EVs.
US automakers have urged Trump not to open the market to Chinese automakers. Trump said last week he would support Chinese companies building cars in the US.
CATL and BYD were added to a Pentagon list of companies in January 2025 and June 2026 respectively over alleged links to China’s military. Ford licenses CATL technology for batteries made at its Michigan plant, a partnership criticised by US lawmakers.