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Top Chinese and U.S. trade negotiators held closed-door talks in South Korea on Wednesday, with Beijing describing the exchanges as constructive ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump’s three-day state visit to China.
The meeting was led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in a VIP lounge at Incheon International Airport under tight security.
China’s state-run Xinhua news agency said the two sides held “candid, in-depth and constructive exchanges” on economic and trade issues of mutual concern, as well as on further expanding practical cooperation.
Officials earlier said the discussions focused on aligning priorities before high-stakes talks between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, scheduled for Thursday in Beijing.
The Seoul meeting followed the sixth round of U.S.-China economic and trade consultations held in Paris in March.
Bessent arrived in South Korea from Japan and is expected to travel to Beijing to join Trump during his visit to China.
During their stay in Seoul, Bessent and He also separately met with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung before holding their trade talks.
Trump is bringing several high-profile CEOs with him to China, including Nvidia’s Jensen Huang, Tesla’s Elon Musk, Apple’s Tim Cook, BlackRock’s Larry Fink and Blackstone’s Steve Schwarzman.
Political economist Jostein Hauge said the rare concentration of household-name Fortune 500 CEOs could lead to “big trade deals emerge.”
Before arriving in South Korea, Bessent met Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and other senior officials in Japan to discuss bilateral economic ties.
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