President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held the first of two bilateral meetings Thursday scheduled during Trump’s state visit to Beijing, in which the pair discussed increasing China’s agricultural imports. Beijing appeared to offer a concession on beef export registrations ahead of the meeting, but the status of the registrations is still not clear.
Trump and Xi talked for over two hours, covering issues from agriculture to fentanyl and the ongoing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, according to a White House official.
“President Trump had a good meeting with President Xi of China. The two sides discussed ways to enhance economic cooperation between our two countries, including expanding market access for American businesses into China and increasing Chinese investment into our industries,” the official told reporters.
Trump invited a group of tech and other executives on the China trip, including Cargill CEO Brian Sikes, and the official said some of those business leaders joined the presidents for a portion of their meeting.
“The Presidents also highlighted the need to build on progress in ending the flow of fentanyl precursors into the United States, as well as increasing Chinese purchases of American agricultural products,” the official continued.
Further, both presidents reportedly agreed on the need to reopen the Strait of Hormuz and restore the free flow of energy products.
The visit is the first from a sitting U.S. president in almost nine years, and the U.S. is hoping to address a raft of agricultural issues, including trade barriers surrounding beef and poultry exports.
Beijing allowed more than 300 U.S. beef facilities’ export licenses to expire last year, cratering beef product exports to the country. Getting the licenses reinstated has been a top priority for industry and several on Capitol Hill, including Montana GOP Sen. Steve Daines, who led a Senate delegation to China earlier this month.
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Just before Trump and Xi were set to meet, several media outlets reported that Beijing had reinstated the export registrations. But China’s customs website is again showing the registrations as expired.
China also uses a quota system to manage beef imports, so even if the registrations are reinstated, the U.S. would not have unfettered access to the Chinese market.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington declined to answer a question from Agri-Pulse on the status of those registrations Thursday, stating only that "China welcomes more mutually beneficial cooperation from the U.S."
"The two countries should expand exchanges and cooperation in areas such as the economy and trade and agriculture," Embassy Spokesperson Liu Pengyu said.
In an interview with CNBC Thursday, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent addressed speculation that further announcements on soybeans could be part of any announcement.
He pointed to the purchase commitments the two sides agreed on at an October meeting in South Korea.
"Beans are really all taken care of," he said, but added that if he were in China's position, he would make additional U.S. purchases now, as prices could soon rise.
"ASA appreciates the ongoing dialogue between the United States and China and hopes to see additional soybean purchases this marketing year, as well as continued progress toward fulfilling future purchase commitments,” American Soybean Association President Scott Metzger. In October, China committed to buying 12 million metric tons, plus 25 million metric tons in the 2026, 2027 and 2028 calendar years.
Senior officials have said that one of the outcomes of the trip could be the establishment of a “Board of Trade” to oversee trade in non-sensitive goods. Bessent also said Thursday that the two are looking at an investment vehicle to boost bilateral investment in non-sensitive areas.
"There are plenty of things that the Chinese could invest in in the U.S.," Bessent said.
In public comments before the meeting with Trump, Xi said he and the U.S. president agreed on “a new vision” for the U.S. China relationship, according to China’s state-run Xinhua.
"I look forward to working together with you to set the course and steer the giant ship of China-U.S. relations, so as to make 2026 a historic, landmark year that opens up a new chapter in China-U.S. relations,” he said, adding that China will only open its market wider, according to Xinhua.
But Xi also delivered a warning on Taiwan, stating that if the matter is “handled poorly” the two superpowers “will collide or even clash, putting the entire U.S.-China relationship in an extremely dangerous situation,” Xinhua said.
Trump also used his comments before a state banquet later in the day to extend an invite to Xi to visit the White House in late September.
This story will be updated.
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