Trump and Xi Set to Discuss AI, Tariffs and Critical Minerals as Trade Truce Frays

US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet for talks covering artificial intelligence, tariffs, critical minerals and broader trade issues, according to reporting on the upcoming encounter. The discussions come as a fragile economic truce between Washington and Beijing faces mounting pressure, with both sides weighing whether to extend or unwind the limited de-escalation reached earlier. AI sits at the center of the agenda, framed by one outlet as either a "nuclear"-scale strategic threat or a market boom depending on how the rivalry is managed. Critical minerals — the raw materials underpinning semiconductors, batteries and defense systems — are a core point of leverage, given China's dominant processing position. Tariffs remain the primary instrument each side has used to apply pressure, and any movement on them would ripple through supply chains and equity markets. No concrete outcomes or joint statements have been reported yet; the reporting characterizes the stakes rather than announcing decisions.

Global Impact

Geopolitically, the talks test whether the US-China economic truce can hold or whether both sides revert to tit-for-tat tariffs and export controls, which would reshape global supply chains for years. Economically, any tariff movement affects inflation paths in both countries and the broader trading system, with allied economies in Europe and Asia forced to choose sides on technology and minerals.