UK seeks ‘common ground’ with China on trade, funding

The UK's Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, arrived in China this weekend for the first UK-China Economic and Financial Dialogue (EFD) since 2019 in an effort to seek ‘common ground’ on trade and investment with Beijing.

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According to the UK Treasury department, Reeves met with her counterpart, Vice Premier He Lifeng, on Saturday for a series of conversations around the support for safe trade and investment.

It claims to have resulted in agreements worth GBP 600 million to the British economy as both sides agreed to deeper cooperation across areas such as financial services, trade, investment, and the climate to support secure growth.

“By finding common ground on trade and investment while being candid about our differences and upholding national security as the first duty of this government, we can build a long-term economic relationship with China that works in the national interest,” Reeves said.

“The agreements we've reached show that pragmatic cooperation between the world's largest economies can help us boost economic growth for the benefit of working people a priority of our Plan for Change,” she said.

The minister is joined on her visit by the Indian-origin chief executive of the Financial Conduct Authority Nikhil Rathi, Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey and senior representatives from some of UK’s biggest financial services firms.