Scholars, business leaders dissect Xi's speeches

Howard Yu, a professor of strategic management and innovation at IMD Business School, Switzerland.

The message couldn't be clearer. Environmental protection through global trade and advanced technology will be the key agenda of China. The location where President Xi Jinping delivered his speech at the G20 banquet is just as important as the message itself. Of all the great cities in China - Shanghai, Beijing, Guangzhou, Hong Kong - the Chinese leadership decided to pick Hangzhou, home of the picturesque West Lake, for the summit.

The message is consistent, too. Xi encouraged global leaders to reach concrete agreements, rather than just talk about changes. And he set an example: On Sept 3, Xi and US President Barack Obama formally committed to the Paris climate agreement. Despite all the disagreements on multiple fronts, from national security to anti-dumping, our precarious planet has created a rare common ground for the two largest economies, which of course bears important implications for the business sector at large.