Xi rolls into Trump summit with China's trade engine roaring — SkimNews
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- Xi Jinping arrives in Washington for a September 24 summit with Trump, four months after their last meeting in May, with the main focus on whether to extend the trade truce struck in October 2025.
- China's global trade surplus is on pace to top $1 trillion for a second consecutive year, with more than half of roughly 6,500 product categories it sold to the US growing compared to 2025 despite tariff efforts.
- Trump described a pending $14 billion Taiwan arms package as a "negotiating chip" with Beijing, alarming officials in Taipei and Tokyo who fear he may cash it in for political wins ahead of November midterms.
- The Trump administration hoped tariffs would force Chinese concessions but has instead watched an export surge that CSIS expert Scott Kennedy dubbed "China Shock 2.0," declaring "this is Xi Jinping's world, and we're all living in it."
- Washington is pressing Xi to pressure Iran to end a war that has driven Trump's approval to its career low, yet Reuters reported Beijing is selling billions in goods to Iran through a sanctions-evasion scheme (which China's foreign ministry says it is not aware of).
- Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called last month's threat of secondary sanctions on Iran partners an "Economic D-Day" — language not yet wielded against China, Tehran's largest trading partner — while he and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng led preparatory talks in New York on Sunday.
Why it matters: The $14 billion Taiwan arms package that Trump openly labeled a "negotiating chip" puts US credibility with Taipei and Tokyo on the table for Chinese purchases of Boeing jets or farm goods. With Trump's Iran war dragging his approval to career lows and China's trade surplus nearing $1 trillion again, Xi holds the stronger hand entering the September 24 talks — and Bessent's "Economic D-Day" sanctions threat remains unused against Tehran's biggest trading partner.
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