The Apple boss also met Vice Premier He Lifeng, Beijing’s chief trade negotiator, state news agency Xinhua said.
In an address to the advisory board of Tsinghua University School of Economics and Management – which is chaired by Cook – He said China was “willing to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation with countries worldwide”, according to Xinhua.
Blackstone CEO Stephen A Schwarzman was also in town, and met Foreign Minister Wang Yi, an official statement said.
“China-US relations are the most important bilateral relationship in the world today,” Wang told Schwarzman.
“Decoupling and severing ties is not a realistic or rational choice and confrontation will only harm both sides,” he added.
According to the statement, Schwarzman said he hoped the two sides would “eliminate misunderstandings”.