China, US business groups discuss cooperation in Washington

Delegates from the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) met with members of the US-China Business Council in Washington, D.C., on Friday for exchanges and discussions on strengthening economic and trade cooperation.

Ren Hongbin, chairman of CCPIT, said the council is ready to work with the US-China Business Council to build more high-quality platforms for government-business dialogue and trade exchanges, and to jointly promote cooperation between the two countries' business communities.

U.S. representatives noted that 2026 is the "China Year" of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and said American companies hope to take part constructively and pragmatically in related events.

"So there's this myth out there that American companies don't want to do business with China. Or there's another myth that says American companies are leaving China. Or the third one, there's a myth that American companies aren't investing in China or that American companies don't welcome Chinese companies in the United States. All of those are myths. All of those are false. As American companies are committed to being in China, they're committed to partnering with Chinese companies. They value their relationship with CCPIT and recognize that CCPIT and these types of exchanges help everybody," said Sean Stein, president of the US-China Business Council.

The U.S.-China Economic and Trade Cooperation Forum and the promotion meeting for the 5th China International Supply Chain Expo (CISCE) was held on Thursday in Chicago, drawing in over 180 representatives from political and business circles of the two countries.

As the world's first national-level exhibition focusing on supply chains, the CISCE has been an internationally shared public good since the first edition was held in 2023. The fifth edition is expected to be held in 2027.

Ren said at the event that China is accelerating the development of new quality productive forces, and there is broad potential for industrial cooperation between Chinese and American companies in areas such as artificial intelligence, green development, and the digital economy.

"Evolving from the world's factory to the world market and now an innovation hub, China will further expand institutional opening up and steadily foster a market oriented, law-based, internationalized business environment. We welcome more U.S. companies to come to China, embrace China opportunity 2.0 and achieve greater success in China," Ren said.

China, US business groups discuss cooperation in Washington

China, US business groups discuss cooperation in Washington

China, US business groups discuss cooperation in Washington

China, US business groups discuss cooperation in Washington

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has opened an investigation into Tesla's certification that its new Cybercab meets all applicable Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS).

The probe, formally designated as an Audit Query, was opened on Sept. 3 and covers an estimated 1,000 Cybercab vehicles, according to an NHTSA investigation document made public on Friday. It will examine the process and technical data Tesla relied upon when certifying the Cybercab, as well as related issues. Tesla began commercial deployment of a small number of Cybercab vehicles in Austin, Texas, on Thursday and notified the agency that it had certified the vehicles as compliant with all applicable FMVSS. Tesla also told the NHTSA that it plans to gradually expand commercial deployment of the Cybercab to include additional vehicles and locations.

The vehicles lack permanently attached conventional manual controls, such as a brake pedal, gas pedal, steering wheel and mirrors, according to the NHTSA.

The agency said the inquiry will examine, among other issues, the extent to which Tesla's certification depended on determinations that certain FMVSS are inapplicable to the Cybercab.

In the United States, the NHTSA establishes vehicle performance requirements, while automakers must certify that their vehicles meet applicable standards before entering the U.S. market, subject to agency oversight to confirm compliance. The NHTSA said it conducts investigations when certified vehicles appear not to adhere to those requirements.

U.S. regulator opens probe into Tesla Cybercab self-certification