Elon Musk Launches Critical Visit To China

Elon Musk is visiting China, and it's very important. He's meeting the foreign minister in Beijing. This is the first time he's visited the biggest factory in three years. The factory makes electric cars.

Many top US CEOs have recently visited China. The latest is happening now. The CEO trip started on Tuesday. Tim Cook from Apple went to China in March. Jamie Dimon from JP Morgan and Laxman Narasimhan from Starbucks are also there this week. China reopened its borders and reversed its zero-COVID policy in December.

Musk met Qin Gang not long after he arrived in Beijing.

Qin reassured Musk about China improving the business environment for investors like Tesla. Qin used a driving metaphor to describe China-US relations. The statement came from his ministry.

Qin said we should brake early, drive safely, and use the accelerator well. We can then work together in a helpful way.

The foreign ministry said Musk wants to increase business in China. He does not support separating the US and China economies. Musk thinks the two economies are like twins that are connected.

The relationship between the US and China is uneasy. The US knocked down a Chinese balloon that was spying and told China not to send weapons to Russia for the war in Ukraine. Taiwan, trade, and human rights are still problematic. The US asked China's defense minister to meet with theirs in Singapore, but China declined.

Qin told Musk to stay respectful, peaceful, and cooperative. This came from a statement by the ministry. They need to keep steering in the right direction.

Qin said both sides should not drive dangerously. He didn't say how they should improve their relationship.

Musk went to China recently. China wants to make investors interested in their slow economy. Some foreign companies are worried because of raids on consulting firms. China also has tense relations with Washington.

Musk went to China, but Tesla won't talk about it. China is important to Tesla, becuse it is a big market.

When Musk went to China, he didn't use Twitter much. This is because Twitter isn't allowed in China, but some people can use it with a virtual private network. He didn't even post on his official Weibo account.

On Monday, Reuters reported that he will go to China and meet with senior Chinese officials. He will also visit Tesla's Shanghai plant. Nobody knows who he will meet or what issues they will talk about.

On Tuesday, someone in the know said that there would be a meeting in Beijing with Zeng Yuqun, chair of CATL, who supplies batteries to Tesla. CATL didn't say anything yet.

Musk went to China in 2019 and met Li Keqiang. In 2020, he made noise online in China by dancing at Tesla's Shanghai factory opening.

Chinese-made electric vehicles are giving Tesla tough competition. Tesla's big production factory in Shanghai is also facing doubt about expansion plans.

The investors of Tesla are unsure about the possible increase of production in Shanghai. They want to know how much the company will allow it to grow.

The investment firm Wedbush says Tesla will work hard to expand in China. Daniel Ives, an analyst, made the prediction.

China has a huge electric vehicle market. It is the biggest in the world. Even with more competition, it is still a profitable market. Someone called it "the golden goose EV market".

He said that Tesla's Shanghai plant is crucial for the company's worldwide production.

Investors are worried that China regulators won't allow Tesla's advanced driver assistance features. This feature, called "Full Self-Driving", costs $15,000 per vehicle in the US.

Chinese researchers have been keeping an eye on Musk's SpaceX. They are also interested in the military uses of the Starlink satellite network. This interest started after Russia invaded Ukraine.

China's government companies are quickly launching their own low-Earth orbit satellite system after seeing the success of Starlink. Research reviewed by Reuters indicates that Chinese military researchers view Starlink as a potential threat to their technology.

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