Trade truce aside, was AI the real Xi-Trump summit breakthrough? - South China Morning Post
Sylvia Main ShanghaiandFrank Chenin ShanghaiPublished: 8:39pm, 26 Sep 2026Updated: 8:42pm, 26 Sep 2026The Xi-Trump summit may prove more significant for stabilising relations and opening space for further negotiations between the world’s two largest economies than for its immediate trade outcomes, analysts said, pointing to the significance of a new dialogue on artificial intelligence.
During President Xi Jinping’s three-day visit to Washington, which ended on Friday, the two sides agreed on recommendations for more favourable tariff treatment covering US$30 billion worth of non-sensitive goods in each direction under the newly established Board of Trade. They also agreed that China would buy American coal and established a “super intelligence” dialogue, according to a White House fact sheet released on Friday.
The two countries would “continue to work on” US concerns over China’s rare earth export controls, while Washington urged Beijing to increase production of refined petroleum products to “stabilise global supply” and take further steps to curb the flow of fentanyl precursors, the fact sheet said.
