Huge business delegation to accompany Starmer on China visit

Senior executives and institutional delegates from more than 50 British companies will accompany United Kingdom Prime Minister Keir Starmer on his official visit to China from Wednesday to Saturday, the Ministry of Commerce said.

The delegation is set to include representatives from UK's competitive sectors, including finance, pharmaceuticals, manufacturing, culture and creative industries, reflecting the British side's strong interest in further deepening economic and trade relations with China, according to an online statement from the ministry's spokesperson.

China-UK trade reached $103.7 billion in 2025, while trade in services is expected to exceed $30 billion. Mutual investment stock stood at nearly $68 billion, highlighting the growing depth of bilateral economic engagement, data from the Ministry of Commerce showed.

The spokesperson emphasized that China attaches great importance to economic and trade cooperation with the UK and is working closely with the British side to prepare deliverables for the visit, as well as for the 2026 China–UK Business Council meeting.

More than 100 companies from both sides have already registered to participate in the meeting, demonstrating strong enthusiasm among businesses. China's Ministry of Commerce plans to sign outcome documents on trade and investment cooperation with the UK later this week, with the goal of fostering new growth drivers for bilateral economic ties.

Against the backdrop of rising global trade protectionism, both China and the UK remain committed to free trade and to upholding the multilateral trading system. The two sides will pursue mutually beneficial cooperation by leveraging complementary strengths, promoting coordinated development in goods and services trade and encouraging two-way investment flows, said the spokesperson.

The commerce official said that China-UK cooperation will continue to expand in emerging and high-potential areas, including green energy, healthcare, creative industries and intelligent manufacturing.