Business Takes the Lead in China

As diplomacy falters, US-China relations take a practical turn

Bill Gates meets with President Xi Jinping in Beijing June 16, 2023

In September of 1995, as a lad of 39, Bill Gates met with President Jiang Zemin. Angered by the counterfeiting of Microsoft products in China, Gates lectured Jiang about intellectual property rights. Normally affable, Jiang was not amused and told Gates to come back after he had learned something about the 5000 years of Chinese history.

Gates definitely learned his lesson. He could not have been met more warmly by President Xi Jinping today in Beijing. A donation of $50M to fund the fight against infectious disease was of course also most welcome- you can watch the video here. Xi and Gates have met before, and Xi said that Gates is the first American friend he has met in China this year. Will Secretary of State Tony Blinken, who arrives in Beijing on Sunday, be the second?

Today as well Micron, targeted as a result of the US-China chip wars, announced that it would invest over $600M in a new factory in China. What this says to me is that American business is ignoring the rift in US-China relations and is forging ahead. Because they really have no other choice. Micron says that half of its China revenues are at risk because of the recent ban.