Even Huntsman, who met with many Chinese leaders as a U.S. trade representative for the region, seemed impressed by the invitation to the Great Hall. The governor described it as a place for "very special, high-level meetings. It's kind of like the White House."

He told the Deseret Morning News that the site choice is a signal from the Chinese government that "we're taking you serious. We welcome your visit. We put a seal of approval on what is being done."

Huntsman said the last time he went to the hall was in the mid-1990s with former President Ronald Reagan.

The day also included a luncheon reception with the U.S. ambassador to China, Sandy Randt. Randt, who has a vacation home in Deer Valley, is expected to visit Utah by the end of the year.

An evening reception was hosted by the China Council for Promotion of International Trade at its downtown headquarters. As he did during earlier meetings with Chinese officials, Huntsman delivered part of his speech in Mandarin, a Chinese dialect he learned while serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The governor left Beijing for an overnight stay in Shanghai to visit the Huntsman Corp. plant this morning before flying back in time for a mid-afternoon event to promote Utah tourism.

All the travel was catching up to Huntsman. After years of a grueling travel schedule as a foreign diplomat, the governor seldom leaves the state.

That's made it a little harder to adjust to the 14-hour time difference between Utah and Beijing, Huntsman said, joking, "I'm out of practice."

---

E-mail: lisa@desnews.com