Frederick B. Dent, the then United States Secretary of Commerce, compiled an executive committee for the council out of several prominent business leaders.

Donald C. Burnham, of Westinghouse Corporation, took the post of chairman and the Board elected Christopher H. Phillips to be the first president.

[4] In 1974, the council began publishing the China Business Review, a journal aimed at American companies trying to enter the Chinese market.

[8] A 2021 study commissioned by the USCBC stated that the Trump tariffs on Chinese goods directly resulted in the loss of 245,000 American jobs.

[9][10]: 180 A 2021 report by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies identified USCBC as a key facilitator of Beijing's efforts to carry out its campaign of subnational influence in and against the United States.