China, US agree to $30b tariff cut, AI dialogue during Xi visit, Beijing says

Two sides agree to set up trade council, extend outcomes of earlier talks Reuters September 26, 2026 1 min read US President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at the North Portico of the White House for a state dinner in Washington, DC, US. Photo: Reuters China said on Saturday it had agreed with the United States on a $30 billion reciprocal tariff-reduction arrangement and on launching a ​dialogue on AI, under an eight-point consensus reached during President ‌Xi Jinping's visit to Washington. The two sides have also agreed to set up a trade council and extend the outcomes of earlier talks in Kuala Lumpur, the Chinese ​Foreign Ministry said. The agreement follows an earlier move by ​the world's two largest economies to extend by two months ⁠a trade truce that had been due to expire on November 10, ​allowing more time to work on a potentially bigger trade deal, US ​Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday. Read: US, China buy time with trade truce as pressure builds The three-day summit between Xi and President Donald Trump, which ended on Friday, showcased personal diplomacy rather than big public breakthroughs. ​Xi has since landed in Beijing, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported ​on Saturday. On artificial intelligence, the two sides agreed to hold a dialogue on the technology's risks ‌and ⁠benefits, with the next round of discussions set for November, and to set up a communication channel for AI-related incidents, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. Read More: China's Xi calls on US, Iran to return to negotiating table Beyond the economy, they also agreed to support each other in ​hosting the Asia-Pacific ​Economic Cooperation leaders' ⁠meeting and the Group of 20 summit, with both leaders planning to attend the gatherings hosted by ​the other, as Trump had earlier said in a ​social ⁠media post. On foreign policy, the leaders agreed that Iran should fulfil its commitment not to develop nuclear weapons, and that no country or entity ⁠should ​impose transit tolls on international waterways, the ​ministry said. The US Embassy in Beijing did not immediately respond to a Reuters request ​for comment.