Vice Premier He Lifeng to meet Bessent ahead of Trump-Xi talks

Vice Premier He Lifeng and his business delegation are set for discussions with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer in New York City later on Sunday.

JP Morgan Chase's headquarters in Manhattan plays host to the meetings that are expected to run all day.

Many of the economic issues that the negotiators have to work through will draft an agenda for the ensuing Washington summit between the two heads of state. This comes ahead of the looming November 10 expiration of a bilateral trade truce.

Apart from setting investment barriers in some Chinese industries, the US is reportedly working on rules that will likely allow its pharmaceutical firms to invest in promising Chinese drugs and has expressed openness to Chinese automakers building US factories.

Bessent has been pushing for agreements on "guardrails" to prevent systemic bifurcation, as China and the US are the two major forces driving development of the advanced AI tools and the global adoption of the technology.

The Trump administration is also expected to challenge Beijing over its supply of rare-earth magnets, which play a key role in the manufacturing of advanced semiconductor technology powering AI.