U.S.-China Officials Set for Talks on Trade, AI, Critical Minerals Ahead of Presidential Summit
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng are set to meet in New York ahead of a high-profile summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping this week. The discussions will focus on key issues including the status of an expiring trade truce, tariffs, critical minerals supply chains, and guardrails for artificial intelligence (AI). Analysts expect limited breakthroughs but some symbolic progress to demonstrate continued cooperation in a tense economic relationship. The talks follow previous meetings between Bessent, He, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer over the past 16 months aimed at setting the stage for presidential-level agreements. A key unresolved issue is China's commitment under an earlier truce to increase purchases of American agricultural goods and Boeing aircraft while restoring critical mineral exports. However, a senior U.S. official noted that China has not met expectations in this area. The AI discussions are particularly significant as both nations lead global development in the field. The meeting will cover open- and closed-weight models, with Chinese open-source tools gaining traction among U.S. firms due to cost advantages over proprietary American alternatives.
