Beijing welcomes foreign investment, including Swire, to Greater Bay Area

China's economy tsar, Vice Premier He Lifeng, sought to reassure foreign chief executives of the country's business potential, describing the economy as highly resilient, while global investment banks cautiously raised their 2025 outlook for the country.

Vice Premier He met the heads of Apple, Pfizer, Mastercard, Cargill and others on Sunday, and held meetings with pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly, medical device company Medtronic and specialty glass maker Corning, a commerce ministry statement said.

Beijing is keen to attract new capital and boost domestic consumption to offset the impact of US tariffs on Chinese goods.

"China will continue to improve the business environment and welcome more investment by multinational companies in China, sharing opportunities for development," He told the business leaders, describing China's economy as "highly resilient" and "full of vitality."

Several global investment banks have acknowledged China's latest policy moves, with Nomura, ANZ, Citi and Morgan Stanley all raising their forecasts for the country's 2025 economic growth by 50 basis points since last week.

Meanwhile, Vice President Han Zheng met Swire Pacific chairman Merlin Swire and Novartis CEO Vas Narasimhan on the sidelines of the China Development Forum 2025.

Han expressed his hope that Swire, a globally renowned multinational, would actively participate in the development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the Hainan Free Trade Port, while also contributing to strengthening Hong Kong's position as an international aviation hub.

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