Top US, Chinese economic officials meet ahead of Trump-Xi summit

US Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent, left, shakes hands with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, right, during a bilateral meeting, in Geneva, Switzerland, on Saturday, May 10, 2025. (Photo: REUTERS/Handout)

WASHINGTON: US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng began talks Sunday (Sep 20), as they set the stage for possible agreements on trade, AI and other issues before a summit of the countries' top leaders.

The talks, which also include President Donald Trump's top trade official Jamieson Greer, are expected to last all day at JPMorgan Chase's headquarters in New York.

It is a prelude to a planned White House meeting on Thursday of the leaders of the world's two biggest economies: Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping .

Both sides will be looking to ease tensions on trade, technology and other strategic concerns. These include the possible extension of a trade truce expiring in November and guardrails for artificial intelligence development.

CNA Games Guess Word Crack the word, one row at a time Buzzword Create words using the given letters Mini Sudoku Tiny puzzle, mighty brain teaser Mini Crossword Small grid, big challenge Word Search Spot as many words as you can Show More Show Less "I'm looking forward to have focused, fulsome and constructive talks today that will set the stage for our leaders' meeting," Bessent told reporters as he arrived for Sunday's talks. US officials will also be looking to ensure the continued flow of rare earth magnets and critical minerals that are vital for US manufacturers.

"I'm looking forward to have focused, fulsome and constructive talks today that will set the stage for our leaders' meeting," Bessent told reporters as he arrived for Sunday's talks.

US officials will also be looking to ensure the continued flow of rare earth magnets and critical minerals that are vital for US manufacturers.

A source familiar with the discussions told AFP that the talks will focus on AI, trade, rare earths and other topics, building on earlier rounds of bilateral talks.

Working level meetings could continue into Monday, added the source.

Earlier negotiations saw China pledge purchases of US agriculture goods too, and their fulfilment of the terms could also be an issue under scrutiny.

On AI talks, Bessent said in an earlier statement: "We are open to discussions on avoiding shared risks and avoiding bifurcation of our two systems."

Another issue is US economic pressure on Iran, as Washington's war with Tehran has entered its seventh month.

China is a top economic partner of Iran that buys much of its oil output and a key diplomatic backer.

Analysts caution that expectations for the Trump-Xi summit are low.

"One of the only things we can hope for in the short term is a truce, and that this will likely continue through the remainder of this year," said former US deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell.

"I think you will hear the president announce the intention to meet with Xi Jinping two more times," added Campbell, who is now chairman of The Asia Group consultancy.

Trump and Xi are expected to meet in November at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Shenzhen, China. Trump is also anticipated to invite Xi to the G20 summit in December at his Doral resort in Miami.

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2025年5月10日星期六，在瑞士日内瓦举行的双边会晤中，美国财政部长斯科特·贝森特（左）与中国国务院副总理何立峰（右）握手。（图片：路透社/供图）

华盛顿：美国财政部长斯科特·贝森特和中国国务院副总理贺立峰于周日（9月20日）开始会谈，为两国最高领导人峰会前就贸易、人工智能和其他问题达成可能协议奠定基础。

此次会谈还将包括美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的高级贸易官员杰米森·格里尔，预计将在摩根大通纽约总部持续一整天。

这是周四世界两大经济体领导人——特朗普和中国国家主席习近平——在白宫会晤的前奏。

双方将寻求缓和在贸易、技术和其他战略问题上的紧张局势。这些问题包括可能延长将于11月到期的贸易休战协议，以及为人工智能发展制定保障措施。

CNA游戏 猜词游戏 逐行破解单词 流行词游戏 用给定的字母组成单词 迷你数独 小谜题，大挑战 迷你填字游戏 小方格，大挑战 单词搜索 尽可能多地找出单词 显示更多 显示更少 “我期待今天能进行重点突出、内容丰富且富有建设性的会谈，这将为我们领导人的会晤奠定基础，”贝森特在抵达周日会谈地点时告诉记者。美国官员还将寻求确保稀土磁体和对美国制造商至关重要的关键矿物的持续供应。

“我期待今天能进行重点突出、内容丰富、富有建设性的会谈，这将为我们领导人的会晤奠定基础，”贝森特在抵达周日会谈地点时告诉记者。

美国官员还将努力确保稀土磁体和对美国制造商至关重要的关键矿物的持续供应。

一位熟悉讨论情况的消息人士告诉法新社，会谈将重点讨论人工智能、贸易、稀土和其他议题，并在前几轮双边会谈的基础上进行。

消息人士补充说，工作层面的会议可能会持续到周一。

此前的谈判中，中国也承诺购买美国农产品，其履行承诺的情况也可能成为审查的焦点。

关于人工智能方面的讨论，贝森特在早前的一份声明中表示：“我们愿意就避免共同风险和避免两个系统分裂进行讨论。”

另一个问题是美国对伊朗的经济压力，因为华盛顿与德黑兰的战争已经进入第七个月。

中国是伊朗最重要的经济伙伴，购买了伊朗的大部分石油产量，也是伊朗重要的外交支持者。

分析人士警告称，人们对特朗普与习近平峰会的预期不高。

“短期内我们唯一能指望的就是停火，而且这种停火状态可能会持续到今年年底，”美国前副国务卿库尔特·坎贝尔说。

“我认为你会听到总统宣布打算再与习近平会面两次，”坎贝尔补充道，他现在是亚洲集团咨询公司的董事长。

预计特朗普和习近平将于11月在中国深圳举行的亚太经合组织（APEC）峰会上会面。特朗普还可能邀请习近平参加12月在他位于迈阿密多拉尔度假村举行的二十国集团（G20）峰会。

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