State news agency Xinhua reported on Thursday that Chinese President Xi Jinping had written to Schultz, encouraging the American billionaire and the global coffee giant he has driven for years to improve economic and trade ties.
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 most recent book, “From the Ground Up: A Journey to Reimagine the Promise of America”. The correspondence included a letter to Xi, which pointed to Starbucks’ longstanding commitment to China and its employees there, the person added.
Starbucks forwarded a request for comment from CNN Business to Schultz’s representative, who did not respond immediately outside normal US business hours.
According to Xinhua, Xi suggested that Schultz and Starbucks (SBUX) “continue to play a positive role in advancing” relations between the two countries. Xi also emphasized that China is working to open up even more to “companies around the world, including Starbucks and other American companies,” the agency said.
Schultz stepped down as President of Starbucks in 2018, after which he assumed the honorary title of President Emeritus. At the time, he said he was exploring a candidacy for the presidency as an independent candidate in 2020. These plans were eventually canceled.
Schultz is outspoken on political issues. During his four decades at Starbucks, he positioned the company as a progressive champion in corporate America.
Schultz also addressed relations between the US and China. In 2018, he lamented the effects of the trade war, saying U.S. tariffs on Chinese products would not help American jobs. China is Starbucks’ main growth market abroad.
“Whenever we had a trade conflict and there were trade wars, it resulted in a slowdown in the United States’ economy,” he told CNN at the time. “This is what I really believe in. The country [of] America shouldn’t be building walls of any kind. We should be building bridges. “
