Trump–Xi Meeting: Soybeans, Rare Earths, TikTok and Fentanyl Cooperation

At the APEC summit in Busan, South Korea, U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping met for roughly 100 minutes. Trump called the talks “excellent” and said the two sides reached “many promising understandings.”

The key outcomes span trade, technology, and security.

🇺🇸 Soybeans
China agreed to purchase at least 25 million tons of American soybeans annually for the next three years, with 12 million tons already planned for this season — marking the first large imports in a year after switching to Brazil and Argentina.

⚙️ Rare Earths
Beijing will suspend for one year its export restrictions on rare earth minerals, crucial for electronics and defense manufacturing. In return, the U.S. will postpone new sanctions targeting Chinese firms.

🚢 Port Fees
Both sides will suspend the port tariffs imposed in October for one year, easing tensions in maritime trade.

💊 Fentanyl
The U.S. will reduce tariffs on fentanyl-related chemicals from 20% to 10%. China has pledged to take strong action to curb exports of the drug’s precursors.

📱 TikTok
China approved the deal transferring majority ownership of TikTok to U.S. investors. ByteDance will retain under 20% of shares and one board seat.

🛢 Energy
The two countries are discussing a large-scale deal for Chinese purchases of Alaskan oil and gas.

🔌 Semiconductors
The leaders discussed chip trade, though exports of Nvidia’s advanced Blackwell chips remain undecided.

Trump confirmed he will visit China in April 2026, with Xi expected to visit the U.S. later.

The Busan meeting signaled a shift from confrontation toward a more pragmatic dialogue aimed at stability and renewed economic cooperation between Washington and Beijing.