President Donald Trump is heading to South Korea for a “big meeting” with Chinese President Xi Jinping, exuding confidence that the talks will be a success. “I think it’s going to work out very well,” Trump said from Tokyo.
The crucial discussion is set for Thursday, scheduled on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. This face-to-face comes as the world’s two largest economies are embroiled in a fresh round of trade hostilities.
The context for the meeting is tense. Washington has threatened to slap 100% tariffs on Chinese goods starting November 1. This was a direct counter to Beijing’s recent move to impose tight export controls on its valuable rare earth minerals.
The economic skirmish didn’t end there, with the US adding new port fees on Chinese vessels, leading to a series of mutual countermeasures that have broken a recent period of calm.
President Trump, however, remains upbeat. He labeled the upcoming discussion “fantastic” and suggested a positive outcome would be “great for everybody.” Trump also mentioned both he and President Xi have “a lot to talk about.”