Xi Jinping’s Washington visit has featured ceremony and warm remarks, but little visible progress on US-China issues so far. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the tariff truce would be extended by two months; AI regulation and Taiwan remain unresolved.
Jennifer Welch, Bloomberg Economics’ chief economic analyst, said the ceremony was intentional pageantry to project “positive vibes” and reflected Trump’s view of himself as a stabilizing force in US-China ties. At their May meeting in Beijing, Trump and Xi agreed to set up trade and investment boards to oversee economic ties, but little else. Financial analysts said a further extension of the tariff truce could come before the summit ended, as neither side wanted a return to last year’s trade war.
Prospects were also dim on the US war with Iran, the war in Ukraine and AI regulation. Robyn Klingler-Vida, a political-economy professor, told the BBC that the US was focused on existential risk and possibly slowing AI, while China aimed to accelerate development, win the technology race and apply AI to its economy. China had not followed through on promises to buy more US agricultural products and sell more rare-earth minerals. A proposed US weapons sale to Taiwan had been on hold for months, and Beijing was watching whether Trump would proceed.
