The much-anticipated summit between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping faces a possible delay due to Trump’s commitment to aligning US military strategy with Iran. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent insisted that the issue was a logistical factor of wartime leadership and not a failure of trade talks between the two countries.
In a series of talks in Paris that ended on Monday, the Chinese delegation expressed a willingness to increase purchases of US agricultural goods, including beef and poultry. In addition, Beijing remains committed to fulfilling its promise to buy 25 million metric tons of soybeans annually under the previously agreed October 2025 trade truce.
A significant development is the proposed establishment of a “Board of Trade” and a “Board of Investment.” The mechanism aims to find sectors where trade can be expanded in a balanced manner without jeopardizing national security or critical supply chains on both sides, especially in the face of a fragile global economy.
However, the issue of critical minerals remains a point of contention. US officials have expressed concerns about the aerospace industry’s access to Chinese yttrium minerals, which are crucial for jet engine manufacturing. While both sides are looking for ways to ease restrictions in this area, official details have yet to be fully disclosed.
Trade analysts say that with Washington’s full attention now focused on the Middle East conflict, any significant breakthrough in US-China relations is likely to occur in stages throughout 2026. This includes the opportunity for a reunion at the APEC and G20 summits scheduled for later this year.
