Chancellor Philip Hammond is to host Chinese officials for November talks on future ties with the UK
Philip Hammond is set to host senior Chinese officials for trade talks next month, as the UK seeks to build ties with non-EU trade partners.
The talks will be the latest in a series of annual summits between the UK and China, and comes after George Osborne last year travelled to the Far East.
Senior officials from both sides are expected to attend the talks in November, which will cover their economic and financial relationship.
Future ties between the two countries are likely to be discussed – Hammond confirmed as long ago as July that the UK was seeking a free trade deal with the Chinese.
China invested over £3.8bn in the UK in 2014.
It follows talks between Theresa May and Chinese premier Xi Jinping at the G20 in China, where she paid tribute to the strength of the relationship between the two countries.
China has been a repeated question mark for the Prime Minister in the early days of her tenure. Former business secretary Vince Cable said after May halted approval on the Hinkley nuclear reactors that she has “a general prejudice” against Chinese investment.
And former Goldman Sachs banker Lord Jim O'Neill quit the government last month after criticising May's approach to China.