Xi hosts American business leaders in Beijing, calls for closer economic ties

China's nationalist leader, Xi Jinping, called for closer trade ties with the U.S. during a meeting on Wednesday with top American business leaders in Beijing that came amid a steady improvement in relations that had sunk to the lowest level in years. Xi emphasized the mutually beneficial economic ties between the world's two largest economies, despite heavy U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports and Washington's accusations of undue Communist Party influence, unfair trade barriers and theft of intellectual property. "Sino-U.S. relations are one of the most important bilateral relations in the world. Whether China and the United States cooperate or confront each other has a bearing on the well-being of the two peoples and the future and destiny of mankind," Xi was cited as saying by China's official Xinhua News Agency. China's formerly highly abrasive tone toward the U.S. has softened in recent months, particularly since Xi and Biden met in San Francisco in November. Officials such as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken have visited, and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is reportedly due to to travel to China again to meet top leaders next month. Xi's administration has maintained a hard line on issues it considers its "Core interests." Those include its claims to virtually the entire South China Sea, the self-governing island democracy of Taiwan - a close American ally - and its heavy-handed rule of outlying regions such as Hong Kong, Tibet and Xinjiang. "The respective successes of China and the United States create opportunities for each other," Xi was quoted as saying by Xinhua.