Chinese President Xi Jinping is heading to Washington seeking to extend a fragile trade truce with U.S. President Donald Trump, as the leaders of the world’s two largest economies prepare for another high-stakes meeting.
Trump is scheduled to host Xi at the White House on Thursday, September 24, for their second face-to-face meeting this year. The talks come as both governments seek to prevent renewed economic confrontation despite continuing disagreements over trade, technology, rare-earth minerals, Taiwan and the war involving Iran.
At the centre of the summit will be the future of a trade truce reached after Trump and Xi met in Busan, South Korea, in October 2025.
That agreement helped prevent a damaging escalation in which Washington and Beijing had threatened each other with tariffs exceeding 100 per cent. The arrangement is currently due to expire on November 10.
Xi is expected to push for an extension that would provide greater stability in relations between the two countries and reduce the possibility of another sudden tariff confrontation. China would prefer a longer extension, while U.S. officials have considered a shorter continuation as Washington presses Beijing to fulfil previous commitments.
The Chinese leader enters the negotiations with his country’s export sector performing strongly.
China is on course for another enormous trade surplus, while its exports have continued growing despite U.S. efforts to reduce dependence on Chinese products. This economic resilience gives Beijing less reason to make major concessions simply to secure an agreement with Washington.
Trump, meanwhile, is expected to seek concrete economic commitments that can be presented as benefits for American businesses, workers and farmers.
One area under discussion involves reciprocal tariff reductions covering about $30 billion in goods. Washington is also seeking increased Chinese purchases of American agricultural products and progress on major commercial agreements involving companies such as Boeing.
China had previously pledged to purchase $30 billion in U.S. agricultural products, but current projections suggest imports could fall short of that amount. A previously announced plan for China to purchase 200 Boeing aircraft has also yet to be fully implemented.
Rare-earth minerals will be another major issue.
China dominates global processing and production of many critical minerals required for automobiles, electronics, artificial intelligence infrastructure and advanced military equipment.
Washington wants Beijing to provide more predictable access to these materials after previous Chinese export restrictions exposed vulnerabilities in American supply chains.
China, in turn, is seeking relief from U.S. technology restrictions and assurances that Washington will not continually expand export controls targeting Chinese companies.
Artificial intelligence is also expected to feature prominently in the discussions.
The United States and China are competing for technological leadership in AI while simultaneously exploring whether limited cooperation could reduce risks associated with increasingly powerful systems.
Officials from both sides have discussed mechanisms for communicating about major AI incidents, although the wider technological rivalry is expected to limit how far cooperation can go.
Taiwan remains one of the most sensitive political issues between the two countries.
Beijing considers Taiwan part of China and has consistently opposed U.S. arms sales and political support for the self-governed island. Taiwan rejects Beijing’s sovereignty claim and says its future should be determined by its people.
China is expected to again raise the issue with Trump during the Washington talks, while decisions surrounding a large pending U.S. arms package for Taiwan remain closely watched.
The Iran conflict adds another layer of complexity to the summit.
China remains the biggest buyer of Iranian oil and maintains significant economic relations with Tehran. Washington would like Beijing to use its influence to put greater pressure on Iran, but China has so far shown limited willingness to align itself with the U.S. strategy.
Despite disagreements across these issues, neither Trump nor Xi appears eager to return immediately to the intense economic confrontation that previously threatened global supply chains.
The summit is therefore expected to focus more on managing competition and extending stability than producing a sweeping settlement of the disputes between Washington and Beijing.
An extension of the trade truce would give both governments additional time to negotiate unresolved issues while providing businesses and financial markets with greater certainty over tariffs and supply chains.
But even if Trump and Xi agree to extend the arrangement, fundamental disagreements over technology, critical minerals, Taiwan and China’s trade surplus are likely to remain.
Thursday’s summit will consequently provide an important indication of whether the relative calm established between Washington and Beijing can continue or whether the world’s two largest economies are moving toward another period of intensified economic confrontation.
