Britain’s May gets $13.26 billion in China deals, Xi promises to build on ‘golden era’

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British Prime Minister Theresa May with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a bilateral meeting during the G20 summit on July 7, 2017.

The £9.3 billion in deals will create over 2,500 jobs across the United Kingdom, the British government said.

Britain’s financial services firms alone secured deals worth more than £1 billion and market access, that would lead to 890 jobs, it said, without giving details.

China sees Britain as an important ally in its call for more open global markets, despite widespread concerns in the foreign business community about the difficulty of operating in China, and both countries refer to a “golden era” in relations.

Meeting in Beijing late on Thursday, Xi told May the two countries should “add new meaning into the bilateral ties so as to forge an enhanced version of the ‘Golden Era,'” according to state-run media.

China has also been appreciative of Britain’s enthusiasm for the China-backed Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank and Xi’s Belt and Road initiative to build a new Silk Road.

In a front page commentary on Friday, the overseas edition of the People’s Daily said Britain had shown “intelligence and pragmatism” in supporting Belt and Road.

“It is a model for other Western nations,” it said. But Brexit has unnerved Beijing, concerned about losing an important voice supporting free trade in the European Union and what it may mean for market access to Europe for Chinese firms that have invested in Britain.

Still, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang told May on Wednesday that China’s relations with Britain will remain unchanged through Brexit.