Donald Trump warned about losing US jobs by Chinese billionare
The billionaire owner of China’s
property-to-entertainment conglomerate Wanda Group has warned Donald
Trump that over 20,000 US jobs would be put at risk if the US
president-elect mishandles Chinese investment in the country.
“I have over $10 billion investment in
the United States and employ over 20,000 people,” Wanda’s CEO Wang
Jianlin said in a forum over the weekend, according to a transcript
posted Saturday to the company’s official site.
“If things are mishandled, they will have nothing to eat,” he added.
Wang said he had asked Chris Dodd, chairman of the Motion Picture Association of America, to deliver his message to Trump.
He was responding to a question about US
lawmakers’ increasing scrutiny of Chinese acquisitions of American
entertainment assets.
“At least in the movie and TV industry,
you have to realise that English-language films rely on their Chinese
box office for growth,” Wang added.
Chinese firms have been on a
high-profile overseas acquisition spree in recent years, snapping up
leading film studios and television production companies.
Some US lawmakers have said that the
Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, a government group
tasked with assessing the national security implications of foreign
investments, should examine the deals, including Wanda’s.
Wanda bought US movie theatre chain AMC
for $2.6 billion in 2012, which in turn acquired the London-based Odeon
& UCI cinema group this year in a deal worth around $1.2 billion.
In January, Wanda spent $3.5 billion to
purchase Legendary Entertainment, the company behind the “Batman”
trilogy and “Jurassic World”, as well as the upcoming “The Great Wall”,
starring Matt Damon and directed by Chinese filmmaker Zhang Yimou.
In November, it acquired the maker of the Golden Globes awards show, Dick Clark Productions, for “approximately $1 billion”.
Wang said the attention from the US Congress reflected the Chinese company’s growing influence in the country.
“We still have to wait to see Mr. Trump’s attitude towards Chinese cultural enterprises after he assumes office,” he said.
AFP
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