Trump says US and China 'made great strides'; the Washington Post sees 'few apparent breakthroughs'

The split. Trump says the talks made progress. The Washington Post, in its own voice, says they brought "few apparent breakthroughs on the issues dividing their countries". Neither side of that split gives a tariff, a figure or a date.

The one trade result. Only France 24 names one. It is a single line in a weekly round-up. It does not say who announced the extension, how long it lasts or what its terms are. No other report we hold mentions it.

What comes next. Life.ru says Trump expects new agreements at two more meetings: APEC in China in November and the G20 near Miami in December. Suspilne says Xi named the same two meetings.

What is not settled - Whether the truce was extended, and on what terms. - Whether anything changed on export controls for chips or AI. - What either government gave up. No report we hold says.

What this is about. The leaders of the world's two largest economies met in Washington to manage a trade conflict that sets the price of goods crossing the Pacific.

How it got here. The US and China have fought over trade since 2018. That year Donald Trump, in his first term, put tariffs on Chinese goods, and China answered with tariffs of its own. Most of those tariffs stayed in place under Joe Biden. From October 2022 the US also limited sales of advanced computer chips to China, and of the tools to make them. Washington says this is about security; Beijing calls it containment. Trump returned to office in January 2025 and raised tariffs on Chinese goods sharply. China hit back with tariffs and with limits on exports of rare earths, the minerals used in magnets, cars and weapons. In 2025 the two sides agreed a pause, a trade truce. Trump and Xi Jinping met in Busan, South Korea, in October 2025 and extended it.

The actors. Trump wants a smaller trade deficit and more factories in the US. Xi, China's president since 2013, wants the tariffs and chip controls lifted and steady access to American buyers. Importers pay tariffs first. Households in both countries pay part of them through prices.

What is at stake. A lasting truce keeps tariffs where they are and supply chains predictable. If it breaks down, tariffs could rise again, chip controls could tighten and new limits on rare earths could follow. Over all of it sits the race in artificial intelligence, which depends on advanced chips.

Where it stands. Xi has left Washington. The two leaders are due to meet twice more this year. The first meeting is the APEC summit, the Asia-Pacific trade forum, which China hosts in November. The second is the G20, the group of major economies, which the US hosts in December.