Chinese President Xi Jinping signalled stronger economic engagement with American businesses during a high-profile summit in Beijing, where US President Donald Trump arrived alongside some of the biggest names in corporate America.
The meeting at Beijing's Great Hall of the People brought together political and business leaders at a time of heightened focus on trade, technology and global economic stability. Key issues on the agenda included tariffs, artificial intelligence, Taiwan, Iran and market access.
Trade tensions dominate summit backdrop
The summit comes as both economies continue to deal with the effects of last year's tariff conflict. Trade tensions had intensified after tariffs crossed the 100 per cent mark, disrupting supply chains and affecting economic activity in both countries.
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A temporary truce had been reached during an earlier meeting between the two leaders in South Korea in October. The current 36-hour summit is seen as an effort to prevent another round of escalation.
During a meeting with US business leaders, Xi offered a positive message to American firms.
According to Chinese state media Xinhua, Xi said China's door would continue to become more open for US companies and that American businesses would have broader opportunities in the country.
He also said, "Beijing welcomes the US to strengthen reciprocal cooperation."
.@POTUS in China: "It's great — a great place. Incredible. China is beautiful." pic.twitter.com/Xiu7KSCvpL
— Rapid Response 47 (@RapidResponse47) May 14, 2026
CEOs join Trump in Beijing
Trump's delegation included a long list of major corporate leaders, including Elon Musk, Tim Cook and Jensen Huang, along with executives from BlackRock, Boeing, Citi, Goldman Sachs and Mastercard.
Speaking at the summit, Trump described Xi in warm terms.
"We've gotten along. When there were difficulties, we worked it out. I would call you and you would call me. People don't know, whenever we had a problem we worked it out very quickly," he said.
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Trump added, "You're a great leader, sometimes people don't like me saying it, but I say it anyway, because it's true...It's an honour to be with you; it's an honour to be your friend... We're going to have a fantastic future together."
"It's an honor to be with you, it's an honor to be your friend, and the relationship between China and the USA is going to be better than ever before." - President Donald J. Trump 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/WZkoGeVqhv
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) May 14, 2026
Xi calls for cooperation
In his remarks, Xi stressed the need for cooperation over confrontation.
"The whole world is watching our meeting. Currently, a transformation not seen in a century is accelerating across the globe, and the international situation is fluid and turbulent. The world has come to a new crossroads," he said.
He also raised questions about the future direction of US-China relations and called for greater stability amid global uncertainty.
