China's President Xi Jinping met with American business leaders at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on Wednesday, as the government tries to woo foreign investors back into the country and international firms seek reassurance over new regulations, Paralel.Az reports citing Reuters.

Beijing wants to boost growth this year in the world's second largest economy, after foreign direct investment into China shrank 8% in 2023 as investor concern grew over an anti-espionage law, exit bans and raids on consultancies and due diligence firms.

President Xi's increasing focus on national security has left many companies uncertain where they might step over the line, even as Chinese leaders make public overtures towards overseas investors.

Some 20 firms were invited to participate in Wednesday's gathering, according to two sources with knowledge of the matter, and the meeting ran for around 90 minutes, one of the sources said.

Stephen Schwarzman, co-founder and CEO of private equity firm Blackstone, Raj Subramaniam, head of American delivery giant FedEx, and Cristiano Amon, the boss of chips manufacturer Qualcomm attended the meeting, according to state media.

The two sources had no immediate comment on what was discussed at the meeting, which was organised by the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, the U.S.-China Business Council and the Asia Society think tank.