The Prime Minister has a tight rope to navigate as he prepares for his trip to China next week.

Chris Hipkins is set to leave on Sunday with a large business delegation including exporters from the primary sector, tourism and education sectors.

He will meet with Chinese leader Xi JinPing.

Former Prime Minister Sir John Key says China's economy has enormous upsides and plenty of opportunities for New Zealand exporters. 

But he told Mike Hosking it's becoming more difficult as our allies put pressure on our country to be more vocal about concerns linked to China.

Key says there are some people in the U.S who are against dealing with China at all - but he doesn't agree with that.

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