Trump to seek tangible trade wins at summit with Chinese President

US President Donald Trump will seek trade wins at a summit of superpowers on Thursday, overshadowed by an unusually sharp warning from the Chinese leader about Taiwan, AFP reports.

Trump hopes to conclude business deals in sectors including agriculture, aviation and artificial intelligence, but will also seek geopolitical progress in areas including the war in the Middle East.

Trump's overtures to Xi Jinping, whom he has described as a "great leader" and a "friend", have so far been met with more muted tones by the Chinese leader.

The warm handshakes and pomp of the previous day were overshadowed by Xi's stark warning that missteps on the sensitive issue of Taiwan could plunge their two countries into "conflict".

Trump did not comment on Taiwan to reporters on Thursday, but US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC that the president would say more "in the coming days".

However, Trump did discuss another key topic, the war against Iran, saying in an interview with Fox News that Xi had effectively assured him that China was not preparing to militarily assist Tehran.

"He said he would not be providing military equipment... he said that strongly," Trump told Fox after the leaders' meeting, adding that Xi "would like to see the Strait of Hormuz open" for maritime transport of oil and other critical products.

Trump also responded to a comment by Xi referring to the "Thucydides Trap", a political theory that war becomes more likely when a rising power challenges an established one.

Xi, however, said the United States and China could "overcome" this danger.

In a social media post early Friday, Trump said Xi had "very elegantly called the United States perhaps a declining nation".

Trump said Xi was not referring to the United States under his leadership, which he claimed was experiencing an "incredible rise", but to the country under his predecessor Joe Biden.

"Two years ago, we were, in fact, a declining nation," Trump posted on his Truth Social page. "Now the United States is the most popular nation anywhere in the world and hopefully our relationship with China will be stronger and better than ever before!"

He said Xi had "congratulated me on so many tremendous successes".

The power of the CEO

Trump is expected to turn the talks to trade on Friday. He is accompanied by a host of US business leaders, including Tesla's Elon Musk and Nvidia's Jensen Huang.

Trump, in his appearance on Fox, appeared to announce one of the big business deals, saying China had agreed to buy "two hundred large" Boeing aircraft.

Shares of the US aviation giant fell after Trump's comments, a sign that the market had expected a more robust purchase from China.

Trump and Xi discussed setting "guardrails" for the use of artificial intelligence, Bessent told CNBC.

Bessent said "the two world AI superpowers will begin to talk", although US export controls on advanced technology to China remain a sore point in relations.

The two sides are embroiled in a series of unresolved disputes and areas of contention, such as the US-Iran war in the Middle East, in which Tehran has closed the Strait of Hormuz, threatening Chinese and global oil supplies.

In a brief statement, the White House said the leaders "agreed that the Strait of Hormuz must remain open to support the free flow of energy", an issue that analysts say could weaken Trump's position, as it has already forced him to postpone this trip, originally scheduled for the end of March.

Trump's visit to Beijing is the first by a US president in nearly a decade.