Trump may meet Xi Jinping ahead of APEC summit

Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump may meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea or China this autumn, with talks expected around the late October APEC summit as both sides seek progress on ending their tariff dispute.

According to the South China Morning Post, citing multiple sources, a meeting between the two leaders could occur either in China before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, scheduled between October 30 and November 1, or on the sidelines of the event itself.

While discussions are reportedly ongoing, no specific date or venue has been confirmed. The two countries have been negotiating to resolve a trade conflict marked by tit-for-tat tariffs that have disrupted global trade and supply chains.

President Trump has proposed a universal 10% base tariff on all imports, with higher rates for countries considered more challenging—China currently faces a 55% tariff rate. He has set August 12 as the target date for a durable agreement to be reached.

A spokesperson for Trump did not comment on the possible meeting plans. However, during a July 11 meeting in Malaysia, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi described their talks as productive. Rubio stated that Trump had been invited to China and expressed optimism that a meeting with Xi would take place.

On Friday, China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao said Beijing aims to stabilise its trade relations with Washington and added that recent talks in Europe indicated a tariff war may not be necessary.

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