Chinese President Xi Jinping received a warm welcome from senior Russian officials upon his arrival on Tuesday at the Kazan International Airport in the capital city of Russia's Republic of Tatarstan.
Xi is in Russia to attend the 16th BRICS Summit at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Among the officials greeting Xi at the airport were Rustam Minnikhanov, head of Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, Aleksei Pesoshin, prime minister of Tatarstan, and Kazan Mayor Ilsur Metshin.
A group of Russian women presented Xi with local specialties to welcome the Chinese head of state, who was given a Guard of Honor as he made his way on the red carpet.
Xi is set to attend small- and large-group leaders' meetings and the BRICS Plus leaders' dialogue, and will deliver important speeches. Xi will also have in-depth exchange of views with other state leaders on the current international situation, practical BRICS cooperation, the development of the BRICS mechanism and other important issues of common concern.
Xi's entourage, including Cai Qi, member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau and director of the General Office of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and Wang Yi, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and foreign minister, arrived on the same plane.
BRICS is an acronym for Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. The upcoming summit is the first to be held after the BRICS expansion in January when Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates were included into the bloc.
Xi receives warm welcome from senior Russian officials at airport
Tesla's strong localization strategy in China has not only boosted operational efficiency but also contributed to global growth, while recent stimulus measures are expected to further enhance market confidence, said Tao Lin, vice head of Tesla.
In an exclusive interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN) during a matchmaking meeting in Chongqing, Tao Lin, vice president of the United States (U.S.)-based automaker, discussed the company's localization efforts and highlighted the positive effects of China's economic stimulus policies on foreign businesses operating in the country.
The vice president attended a matchmaking meeting held during a roundtable meeting between the country's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and U.S. multinational enterprises in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality on Monday, where representatives from over 60 multinational companies from Europe, the U.S., Japan, and South Korea participated in discussions on cooperation and investment opportunities.
She noted Tesla's high level of localization in China, which has led to increased efficiency and effective cost management.
"Over 95 percent of our supply chain is in China, and 99.9 percent of our employees are localized. We find that local teams are highly efficient, and local suppliers respond quickly and efficiently. At the same time, our local team also does an excellent job in cost management and control. That's why I think Tesla has done a great job when it comes to localization, which also contributes to global development," said Tao.
China's central bank, together with the country's top securities regulator and financial regulator, announced in September a raft of stimulus measures, including a 0.5 percentage points reduction in the reserve requirement ratio (RRR) and a one-trillion-yuan (about 140.42 billion U.S. dollars) liquidity injection into the financial market, to promote high-quality economic growth.
When asked about the impact of these policies on American companies in China, Tao emphasized that the stimulus measures have boosted consumer confidence, driving consumption and injecting momentum into companies' future development.
"I think the direct impact on enterprises will be related to market confidence. That said, we need to see consumer confidence rebound, which will ultimately affect consumption trends. Because for any company, the most important thing is that your products are being purchased. Those products need to have a market and need to be accepted by the public. So, confidence is very important. You must have confidence in the market before you can do the back-end research, development and production," she said.
Tesla benefits from staffing, talent localization strategy in China: vice president
