China is taking another stab at opening its closed financial services sector but this time is asking Wall Street's advice on how to best bring this about. Reliable sources said Chinese government officials are seeking to reassure U.S. financial firms Beijing is truly receptive to their ideas.
Some of Wall Street's top movers are now in Beijing at the invitation of the country's central government. The hurriedly organized roundtable meeting that began Sunday and continues today (Monday) is looking for ways to improve strained ties with the United States. It also wants suggestions on how best to open-up China's financial sector, which had long been a major American demand.
The high-level event chaired by Zhou Xiaochuan, former governor of the People's Bank of China (PBOC), and John Thornton, ex-president of investment house Goldman Sachs, comes at a time of trade enmity between both nations arising from a trade war ignited by president Donald Trump.
The meeting comes as the United States is readying a final list of $200 billion in Chinese imports on which it plans to levy tariffs of between 10 and 25 percent in the coming days.
The attendees are scheduled to meet with Chinese vice-president Wang Qishan today after the full-day business session on Sunday. Prior to the opening of the meeting, Zhou and Thornton asked participants to give one or two specific ideas on how to further open China's financial sector.
Participants were also asked to suggest ways to forge normal U.S.-China relations for the benefit of both countries and the world. The ideas should be accompanied by specific action plans, according to a source familiar with the conference arrangements.
Participants don't want something that's feel-good, said a knowledgeable source. The ideas and the plans that will bring them about have to be specific actionable areas where reform and opening markets are needed.
Top executives from the top financial firms in both countries are at the event. U.S. participants include Jan Metzger, Citigroup's Asia head of corporate investment banking; John Waldron Goldman Sachs' newly-appointed president; Nicolas Aguzin, CEO of JPMorgan Asia, and Franck Petitgas, Morgan Stanley's head of international business. C-suite executives from Blackstone, Charles Schwab, and U.S. index provider MSCI are also in attendance.
Among the Chinese firms at the roundtable are Bank of China, the Shanghai Stock Exchange, China International Capital Corporation, Hillhouse Capital Group, and Primavera Capital Group.
Executives from the Hong Kong Stock Exchange; the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (Hong Kong's de-facto central bank), and the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (the financial sector regulator) are also said to be in attendance.
