Trump and Xi Meet Thursday With Tariffs, AI, Iran and Taiwan on the Table

Chinese President Xi Jinping arrives in Washington this week for a high-stakes summit with President Donald Trump, with the meeting set for Thursday, September 24 at the White House . On Wednesday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng held "substantive discussions on the U.S.-China economic relationship" in Washington, focused on "securing meaningful commitments that protect American workers, farmers, and businesses" . That followed a long session in New York in which the Treasury secretary and the trade representative spent eight hours with Chinese officials.

The agenda is broad. The Financial Times lists the tariff war, AI safety and ending the Iran war among Xi's most urgent goals, while noting that one topic outranks the rest . The Wall Street Journal reports that Beijing sees a "rare window" to press its case on Taiwan with a transactional president, noting that Trump has withheld a $14 billion arms sale to the island. The FT also asks whether Trump has sidelined his China hawks, writing that Xi will find a president "wary of jeopardising their détente" .

For markets, Barron's frames the meeting around whether the two leaders make progress on tariffs, trade deals, AI and Taiwan . The most direct single-stock exposures are NVDA and BA. One analysis argues that Nvidia's $108.0 billion current-quarter revenue guidance already excludes China, so any chip-licensing news would be upside rather than a risk to the outlook, while Boeing needs an actual signed order to move and investors should read the joint statement for the word "delivery".

Not everyone expects Washington to hold much leverage. CNBC reports that strains with allies complicate U.S. pressure on China, quoting Brookings' Ryan Hass: "leverage requires a united front and there are a shrinking number of countries willing to follow America's lead right now". Former White House adviser Steve Moore cast the talks as a "battle of the two superpowers" with the AI race at the top of the agenda. What to watch on Thursday: whether the talks produce specific commitments on tariffs, chip export licensing and aircraft orders, or only a statement of intent.