The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea will be the stage for a crucial meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping this Thursday.
President Trump, currently in Tokyo as part of a wider Asia trip, expressed high hopes for the outcome. “That’s a big meeting, and I think it’s going to work out very well, actually,” he told reporters.
These talks are happening just as a new trade dispute has erupted between the two nations. The US has threatened 100% tariffs on Chinese goods from November 1. This was in retaliation for Beijing’s new export controls on rare earth minerals.
This recent conflict, which also includes new US port fees and Chinese countermeasures, has broken a period of relative calm and heightened global economic anxiety.
“We are gonna be (having) a fantastic meeting,” Trump added, predicting a positive result that would be “great for everybody.” He also noted that both he and President Xi have “a lot to talk about.”