State News Agency Xinhua reported on Thursday that Chinese President Xi Jinping wrote to Schultz, encouraging the US billionaire and the global coffee giant he had led for years to improve economic and trade relations.
Xi’s letter was in response to a message from the American businessman.
According to someone 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, which underscored Starbucks’ long-standing commitment to China and its employees there, the person added.
Starbucks referred a request for comment from CNN Business to the representative for Schultz, who did not immediately respond outside of normal U.S. 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 stressed that China is making efforts to open up more to “businesses around the world, including Starbucks and other American companies,” the agency reported.
Schultz resigned as chairman of Starbucks in 2018, after which he assumed the honorary title of chairman emeritus. At the time, he said he was considering running for president as an independent candidate in 2020. Those plans were ultimately scrapped.
Schultz is frank on political issues. During his four decades at Starbucks, he positioned the company as a progressive champion of American business.
Schultz also touched on US-China relations. In 2018, he lamented the effects of the trade war, saying US tariffs on Chinese goods would not help US jobs. China is Starbucks’ top overseas growth market.
“Every time we’ve had a trade conflict and there have been trade wars, it has caused the economy of the United States to slow down,” he told CNN at the time. “That’s what I really believe. The country [of] America should not be building walls of any kind. We should build bridges. “
