China is committed to "creating a more market-oriented, rule of law-based and internationalized economic environment" for foreign enterprises, Qin told the entrepreneur, according to the statement.
According to Chinese diplomacy, Elon Musk told Qin during their meeting on Tuesday that Tesla "wants to continue to develop its business in China".
Musk is making his first trip to China since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Visits by international officials who promote "better understanding of China" and "mutually beneficial cooperation" are welcome, Mao Ning, a spokesman for China's Foreign Ministry, said Tuesday.
Tesla announced in April that it would build a new battery factory in Shanghai.
The plant will have an initial capacity of 10,000 Megapack batteries per year and is expected to start production "in the second quarter of 2024," according to Xinhua news agency.
Tesla boss Elon Musk in Shanghai on January 7, 2020 © STR / AFP / Archives
The site will become Tesla's second factory in the financial center of eastern China behind its massive mega-factory, which began work on in 2019.
Relations between the billionaire and Beijing have raised questions in Washington. U.S. President Joe Biden said in November that Tesla's ties to foreign countries "deserved" to be examined.
"Tesla continues to focus aggressively on expanding" its footprint in China, which remains the goose that lays the golden eggs," analysts at investment firm Wedbush Securities said in a note.
Sales of electric and hybrid cars doubled in 2022 and account for more than a quarter of vehicles sold, a level never seen before, according to the China Federation of Private Car Manufacturers (CPCA).
Government support for electric vehicles coupled with growing consumer interest has allowed Chinese companies to dominate their domestic market – the world's largest car market.
While Tesla remains the world's leading seller of electric cars, the popularity of Chinese brands has soared in recent years.
The Chinese automaker BYD, one of the most prominent brands in its country on the electric niche, announced at the end of March the fivefold increase in its net profit during the year 2022.
Tesla saw its net profit decline significantly in the first quarter despite a significant increase in sales, due to a drop in prices.
The France inaugurated Tuesday the first plant producing batteries for electric cars on its soil in Billy-Berclau (Pas-de-Calais) in the north of the country, a key step towards a deep industrial metamorphosis aimed at catching up with Chinese manufacturers.
© 2023 AFP