The United States will not impose new tariffs on China before a planned meeting between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Bloomberg reported, citing sources familiar with the discussions in the administration. According to the publication, the decision is related to the upcoming talks in Washington and an attempt to avoid increasing tensions immediately before the meeting.
Bloomberg also indicated that the expected US trade measures have been postponed at least until the two leaders meet. According to the media, the White House and Trump's economic team are discussing various options for putting pressure on Beijing, but announcing new tariffs before the meeting is not on the agenda for now.
Technology leaders at the White House dinner
In parallel, ABC News reported that OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang plan to attend the state dinner that Trump will give in honor of Xi Jinping. The media outlet cited sources familiar with the organization of the event.
Reuters also reported that Huang is a planned guest at the dinner, which reinforces the signal that artificial intelligence and chips will be among the key topics in the talks between Washington and Beijing. In recent days, other media outlets, including the AP and Axios, have also reported on the heightened focus on AI, export restrictions and technological competition between the two powers.
What's Behind the Topic
The link between trade talks and the technology sector is particularly sensitive because of US restrictions on the export of advanced chips to China and the dependence of the Chinese industry on American technology. The presence of leading figures from Nvidia and OpenAI at the dinner suggests that the topic of artificial intelligence is likely to be part of the broader agenda of the Trump-Xi meeting.
So far, according to the cited media, it has only been confirmed that new US tariffs are not expected before the meeting, and some of the technology leaders are planned guests at the state dinner. The actual agenda for the Trump-Xi call, as well as possible concrete decisions following it, remain under development.
Sources: Bloomberg, ABC News, Reuters, AP, Axios