The proposed US-China Board of Investment is unlikely to emerge as a major outcome when US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are expected to meet in Washington next month, reported South China Morning Post (SCMP), citing the head of a leading bilateral business group.
“I’m not seeing evidence yet that that’s going to be a sizeable deliverable for the next summit,” Sean Stein, president of the US-China Business Council, told the SCMP.
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He said neither government had meaningfully started consultations, adding that “the US side and the Chinese side neither have really initiated the consultation process” and that “it looks like neither side is ready yet for discussions with the private sector”.
The Board of Investment was announced in May, alongside a Board of Trade, following the Trump-Xi summit as part of an effort to stabilise commercial ties between the world’s two largest economies.
A White House fact sheet described the investment board as a government-to-government forum for investment-related issues, while the trade board would cover bilateral trade in non-sensitive sectors.
Progress appears uneven. Stein said both sides are prioritising the trade mechanism over the investment framework.
“I don’t think they are yet focused as much on the Board of Investment as they are on the Board of Trade and making sure the Board of Trade can very quickly deliver results for both countries,” he said.
In an emailed statement, Chinese embassy spokesman Liu Chang said the two countries’ economic and trade teams are “maintaining close communication regarding the relevant mechanisms”.
He added that the trade and investment councils would provide “a platform for pragmatic discussions” and help shift bilateral consultations from “crisis response” to “mechanised management”.
The US Treasury Department did not respond to SCMP’s requests for comment.
Trade talks have moved faster, with negotiators working to finalise non-sensitive sectors and products eligible for tariff-free trade capped at $30bn on each side.
In June, the Office of the US Trade Representative sought public comments on products that could be included in the Board of Trade.
Last month, the Chinese embassy said agriculture and aviation were among sectors selected for tariff-reduced trade.
The slower pace on investment comes as broader US-China economic tensions persist, with both governments expanding tariffs, export controls and restrictions on sensitive industries.
