WASHINGTON/NEW YORK — Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump are preparing for their second summit this year, with tariffs, rare earth materials, artificial intelligence and other contentious issues threatening a trade truce that expires in November.
After Trump traveled to Beijing in May, the tables have turned and Washington is now the host. The White House plans an elaborate welcome, including a state dinner. However, expectations for concrete outcomes remain subdued, as the earlier meeting was widely viewed as more symbolic than substantive. Any discussion of Taiwan — which China claims as its own — will draw close scrutiny, particularly given Trump’s characterization of arms sales to the island as a “very good negotiating chip.”
Here are the latest developments (Washington time):
Wednesday, Sept. 23
11:30 a.m. U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent is meeting with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng once more, just hours before Xi’s arrival in Washington.
“We have some unfinished business from Sunday,” Bessent told reporters, referring to his second discussion with He this week.
“We want strategic stability, but it has to be based in reciprocity and fairness,” Bessent added.
During closed-door negotiations on Sunday at JPMorgan headquarters in Manhattan, both sides agreed to exempt “nonsensitive” goods from future tariff measures.
7:40 a.m. A generational shift is emerging among Americans in their perception of China. Younger and Democratic-leaning Americans are increasingly open to engagement rather than decoupling, according to recent studies.
A Chicago Council on Global Affairs survey released this week found that 57% of Americans favored engaging with China — the highest level since 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic. The same poll indicated that Americans believe global respect for the U.S. has declined over the past decade, while most respondents said respect for China had either held steady or grown.
According to the Ronald Reagan Institute Summer Survey, 93% of Americans aged 65 and older expressed concern about Chinese espionage, compared with just 62% of those aged 18 to 29. Younger respondents were also less worried about a potential military conflict over Taiwan, Chinese land acquisitions in the U.S., and China’s involvement in fentanyl trafficking.
Data on Chinese public opinion of America is scarce, though declining numbers of Chinese tourists and students in the U.S. suggest growing caution amid tighter visa and immigration policies.
7:00 a.m. Xi arrives in the U.S. at a moment when China’s global standing has improved relative to America’s.
A Gallup report published in April showed China surpassing the U.S. in global approval ratings in 2025. A median 36% approved of Chinese leadership versus 31% for the U.S. — the largest gap in China’s favor in nearly two decades. The report attributes this largely to declining U.S. ratings under Trump’s second term rather than a rise in China’s favorability.
A more recent Pew Research Center survey across 37 economies found a median of 51% held a favorable view of China, with the warmest sentiment in Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America — regions where China has deepened trade ties in recent years.
Pew found confidence in both Trump and Xi generally low, though respondents in 22 countries viewed Xi more favorably. Only in eight countries, including Japan and Israel, did Trump enjoy significantly greater confidence.
Still, the Pew survey rated the U.S. government higher than Beijing on respect for personal freedom.
6:30 a.m. This marks Xi’s first formal state visit to the U.S. since 2015 and his first time on American soil since the 2023 APEC forum. Much has changed for both nations in the intervening decade.
In the U.S., a stock market boom driven by AI investments has generated vast wealth for high-income households, but middle- and lower-income families face rising costs of living, worsened by elevated energy bills tied to Trump’s policies on Iran.
The top 20% of Americans now account for 60% of personal spending, according to Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi.
Polls suggest affordability concerns have eroded Trump’s standing. A Reuters/Ipsos survey released this week found only 32% approved of his job performance — the lowest of his career — while just 17% approved of his handling of living costs.
No public polling exists on Xi’s standing within China’s Communist Party, but signs of discontent are emerging due to labor market strains. Youth unemployment hit a record 18.9% in August, amid widespread AI adoption.
China has cemented its dominance in global manufacturing with a record trade surplus exceeding $1 trillion, despite Trump’s tariff efforts since his first term in 2018. Chinese companies are also advancing technologically. Yet the economy is split: a yearslong property downturn has eroded family wealth and suppressed consumer spending, while official growth rates continue to slow.
6:10 a.m. The scene at Joint Base Andrews in the early hours of Wednesday, ahead of Trump’s welcome for Xi.
6:00 a.m. At a forum in Sydney, Asian and military affairs experts offered sobering assessments.
Retired U.S. Indo-Pacific Command commander John Aquilino said China is conducting the largest military buildup since World War II. “Their industrial base is in a wartime footing. They are cranking out ships, submarines and airplanes like it’s their day job. That is for only one reason, and that is for the PRC to change the current world order in ways that benefit China at the expense of all of us,” he said.
Aquilino stressed the need for the U.S. to collaborate with allies on economic alternatives and deterrence. Regarding the summit, he said the direction of Taiwan discussions “absolutely concerns me.” Reuters reported this week that Xi is likely to urge Trump to halt new arms sales to Taipei.
Kurt Campbell, former U.S. deputy secretary of state and co-founder of The Asia Group, said at the same event that Xi is trying to “reduce the confidence in Taiwan in the United States” by framing “how to think about Taiwan and resisting arms sales.”
Lai I-Chung, president of the Prospect Foundation think tank, said Taiwan will be watching the summit “very closely” but stressed that the island democracy’s fate will “not be determined by the negotiation between those two powers.”
5:45 a.m. Tesla CEO Elon Musk called Xi a “great leader” in an interview aired by Chinese state broadcaster CCTV. The billionaire, reportedly invited to Thursday’s state dinner with both presidents in Washington, said China has “prospered immensely” during Xi’s tenure.
Musk has repeatedly praised China in recent weeks while denying rumors that he plans to wind down Tesla’s operations there.
5:15 a.m. A commentary in the Communist Party’s People’s Daily presented a broadly positive outlook on the summit. “The China-U.S. relationship is the most important and complex bilateral relationship in the world, and head-of-state diplomacy serves as the ‘guiding star’ of this relationship,” it stated, repeatedly invoking “constructive strategic stability” — a framing that emerged at the May summit.
In a separate People’s Daily piece, China’s ambassador to the U.S., Xie Feng, drew clear boundaries. “China’s sovereignty, security, and development interests cannot be violated, and four red lines — the Taiwan question, democracy and human rights, development paths and systems, and development rights — cannot be challenged.”
5:05 a.m. Xi is en route to Washington, according to Chinese state news agency Xinhua. He is accompanied by his wife, Peng Liyuan, along with top aide Cai Qi and Foreign Minister Wang Yi, among others.
He is scheduled to land in the early evening at Joint Base Andrews, where Trump himself will greet him — a rare diplomatic courtesy.
Oxford Economics noted the trip signals the U.S.-China relationship is “becoming more predictable,” yet described both sides as “buying time.”
“China wants to preserve export access while reducing external technology dependence. The U.S. wants to limit near-term supply-chain disruption and build manufacturing capacity at home. Economic interdependence is difficult to unwind, and both sides need time to build credible substitutes,” the advisory firm said.
The analysts predicted “narrow” and “reversible” outcomes — including limited tariff relief, potential expanded commitments to purchase farm goods and aircraft, and pledges to cooperate on AI safety and Iran — while leaving thornier issues around tech rivalry, transshipments, and Taiwan unresolved.
