U.S. business leader calls for reinforcing stable supply chains amid challenges

A U.S. business leader on Tuesday called for concerted efforts to guarantee supply chain stability in the face of increasing challenges in the world, saying "a stable and predictable business environment serves everyone's interests."

"We need to ensure that our trade policies and our business environments reflect the spirit of cooperation and progress that we've worked so hard to achieve," Sean Stein, the incoming president of the U.S.-China Business Council, said here at the second China International Supply Chain Expo.

China and the United States should prioritize establishing greater certainty in economic interactions, Stein said in his speech at the opening of the expo, stressing "it's essential for us to support ongoing trade and collaboration."

Stein's words came amid growing tension in economic ties between the world's two largest economies, with tariff hikes on Chinese-made electric vehicles and U.S. investment restrictions over sectors like chips, AI and quantum computing against China.

Despite the headwinds, the ongoing expo in China's capital, which runs from Tuesday to Saturday, has attracted more businesses compared with the inaugural expo held last year, in particular attendees from the United States. Foreign exhibitors accounted for 32 percent of the total, compared with 26 percent a year earlier, with U.S. companies contributing the largest share.

The expo is expected to further strengthen global consensus on industrial and supply chain cooperation, helping businesses from across the world integrate more effectively into the global supply chain, according to the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, the organizer of the expo.

Apple CEO Tim Cook on Monday visited the booth of Apple's four Chinese suppliers at the expo and highlighted the significance of China in the Apple supply chain. "I am so proud that Apple has an exhibit here with our partners. We could not do what we do without them," he said.

Stein's Tuesday speech communicated a similar stance on global supply chain cooperation as he emphasized how interconnectedness has helped "support innovation, sustain jobs, and uphold and uplift communities, not just in the United States and China, but around the world."

Stein recognized China's efforts in the area, such as policies to create "a unified national market in which companies from all over the world can thrive."

Stein called on businesses to leverage the expo as a platform to deepen dialogues, explore new opportunities and strengthen commercial plans.

"Only by maintaining these open channels of communication, building trust, can we collectively rise to meet the new challenges and reaffirm our commitment to fostering a stable and collaborative global trading environment," he said.