Chinese Vice-Premier Liu He will attend the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, next week, the foreign ministry confirmed on Friday.
Liu's trip was first reported by the South China Morning Post.
He will travel to Switzerland from Sunday to Tuesday for the annual event and visit the host country, ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said.
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It will be the first time a senior Chinese leader has attended the event in person since the Covid-19 pandemic began three years ago, and also the first foreign visit by a senior official since China lifted its Covid-related travel restrictions early this week.
Wang did not elaborate on Liu's agenda at the forum, which officially starts on Monday, or whether he would meet foreign leaders and business executives in Davos.
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai will be among the US delegation to Davos. Photo: AP alt=US Trade Representative Katherine Tai will be among the US delegation to Davos. Photo: AP>
The US delegation will include Trade Representative Katherine Tai, climate envoy John Kerry and Samantha Power, the administrator of the US Agency for International Development, according to a US statement last week.
Liu is widely seen as President Xi Jinping's most trusted economic aide and has in the past five years overseen a huge portfolio - from the hi-tech drive to broader industrial policies - as one of China's four vice-premiers.
He has also been appointed as the Chinese convenor of the US-China Comprehensive Economic Dialogue and led trade talks with the US.
If Liu and Tai meet at Davos, it would be their first face-to-face session. They have held several video calls since Tai took office two years ago.
Liu, 70, is widely expected to retire from his posts in the government at the National People's Congress annual meeting in March. He has already stepped down from the Politburo - the decision-making body led by Xi - at the Communist Party's national congress in October.
In recent years, Beijing has used the forum to reaffirm a commitment to opening up its markets and to economic globalisation. It has also used the event to criticise what it called Washington's "protectionist" and "isolationist" policies.
Xi attended Davos in 2017, reiterating Beijing's commitment to integrate with the world economy and to live up to the Paris Agreement on climate change. He has also delivered virtual speeches, in 2021 and 2022 during the pandemic lockdown.