By Laurie Chen, Michael Martina BEIJING/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -When the leaders of some of the world's largest companies flocked to Beijing for a business forum last month, their main purpose was a coveted meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

China’s leaders are downplaying the potential impact from U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade war, saying they have the capacity to protect jobs and limit damage from higher tariffs on Chinese exports.

Chinese officials on Monday criticized the Trump administration’s approach to negotiating tariff policy and accused the U.S. of bullying other nations. “They make up bargaining chips out of thin