State news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday that Chinese President Xi Jinping Schultz had written to encourage the American billionaire and the global coffee giant he led for years to improve economic and trade relations.
Xi’s letter was in response to a message from the American businessman.
According to a person familiar with the matter, Schultz recently sent the Chinese president a translated copy of his latest book, “From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America.” The correspondence included a letter to Xi, highlighting Starbucks’ longstanding commitment to China and its employees there, the person added.
According to Xinhua, Xi suggested that Schultz en Starbucks (SBUX) “continue to play a positive role in promoting” relations between the two countries. Xi also stressed that China was working to further open up to “companies from around the world, including Starbucks and other US companies,” the agency reported.
In a statement, Schultz said it was a “great honor” to receive a response from Xi.
“I truly believe that the best days of Starbucks are ahead in China and that the values of creativity, compassion, community and hard work will lead the company to an even greater contribution from business and community, while also building common ground to continue to build cooperation between our two countries, ”he added.
Schultz stepped down as Chairman of Starbucks in 2018, taking on the honorary title of Chairman Emeritus. At the time, he said he was exploring a run for president as an independent candidate in 2020. Those plans were eventually called off.
Schultz has been outspoken on political issues. During his four decades at Starbucks, he positioned the company as a progressive champion in corporate America.
Schultz has also addressed ties between the US and China. In 2018, he lamented the fallout from the trade war, saying US tariffs on Chinese goods would not help US jobs. China is Starbucks’ main overseas growth market.
“Every time we’ve had a trade dispute, and we’ve had trade wars, it has led to a downturn in the United States economy,” he told CNN at the time. “This is what I really believe. The country [of] America shouldn’t build walls of any kind. We should build bridges. ‘
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