Xi in the UK: Economics the dominant note
British businesses want to tap the opportunities in the Chinese market, and China is glad for the faith placed in it, at a time when its economic health is in doubt.
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PRESIDENT Xi Jinping begins a historic four-day trip to the United Kingdom on Tuesday. It is the first state visit by any Chinese president for a decade and both Beijing and London are - rhetorically at least - hailing a new "golden" era in bilateral ties.
The pomp that he will be afforded is underlined by the fact that he will be feted at Buckingham Palace, Downing Street, Chequers (the country home of the UK prime minister) and the Houses of Parliament. This will offer genuine five-star, red-carpet treatment for the Chinese president in a way designed for maximum public-relations effect.
Indeed, the UK Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne, and leading potential successor to Prime Minister David Cameron in 10 Downing Street, has even pledged to make Britain "China's best partner in the West". This appears to be a concerted ambition for Mr Osborne, personally, and has already ruffled the feathers of Washington following the UK's decision to become a founder member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), which is being championed by Beijing as a potential alternative to the World Bank.
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