Beijing takes the high road on EVs

After US Secretary of State Antony Blinken made an unexpected detour to a Beijing record store to charm the Chinese people after having tough talks in China, Tesla boss Elon Musk paid a surprise visit to Premier Li Qiang in Beijing.

While Li and Musk are acquainted with each other, their Sunday meet-up was believed to have been arranged at short notice.

The tech-giant billionaire, who also owns SpaceX and Starlink, had only a week ago cancelled a scheduled visit to India to meet with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi owing to "very heavy Tesla obligations."

A Tesla announcement said local Chinese authorities have removed "restrictions" on Tesla vehicles after its cars made in China were given data security clearance.

News of Beijing's green light for Tesla cars would bode well for Tesla investors, who have seen the company's stock price fall 40 percent since July.

Its major Chinese rivals, including BYD, expanded their market share amid reports that Tesla cars were banned from government-related properties because of security concerns.

Reports of the ban have never been officially verified. Although Tesla was not specific about the restrictions when saying local authorities had removed them, the statement obviously lent credence to those reports.

It is small wonder Tesla stock roared upwards in premarket trading yesterday, rising more than 10 percent.

Of course, Musk did not need to change his "very heavy" schedule to go to Beijing only to be told the good news in person.

He was so busy that, when most Americans were still asleep on Monday, his plane was already on the way back to the United States by way of Anchorage, Alaska.

It is noteworthy that when US Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen and Blinken were in China, their itineraries were arranged to be different from previously to include high-profile public appearances in the community.

While internet users showed a strong interest in what Yellen ate without the shield of a curtain at a Chinese restaurant, Blinken's stop at a Beijing record store to buy an album by famous Chinese musician Dou Wei and a release by American mega star Taylor Swift went viral. It is apparent that, while their talks with Chinese officials including Blinken's meeting with President Xi Jinping were tough, they put on a soft side for the Chinese people.

By the same token, with Musk going to Beijing for Premier Li to tell the American business icon in person the good news about Tesla, the Chinese leadership was also trying to tell US businessmen that Beijing is dealing with them fairly despite the hostility exhibited by their administration and Congress.

Although this could be called "an eye for an eye," Beijing is probably trying to avoid such a conclusion.

Instead, the message may be that, although the Biden administration is cracking down on China's electric car exports, Beijing is so kind that it is widening the door to US electric vehicles rather than limiting their access.

So who can win the moral high ground in the ongoing Sino-US battle?