BEIJING: China’s leader Xi Jinping said Chinese modernisation will benefit US firms, state media reported Friday, in a letter sent to mark the 50th anniversary of a committee on China-US trade.

The letter was published as US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen called for China to shift from a state-driven approach to economic policy, saying the model can discourage investors.

US companies have long complained about what they see as an unfair business environment in China, with limited protection for intellectual property and preferential treatment afforded to domestic competitors.

But in Xi’s letter, he insisted that China would “unswervingly promote high-level opening up to the outside world, and create a market-oriented, rule of law-based, internationalised business environment”.

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“Chinese modernisation will bring more opportunities to global enterprises including American ones,” the letter continued.

“There is great potential, broad space and promising prospects for strengthening China-US trade cooperation,” he wrote, according to state broadcaster CCTV.