President Donald Trump speaks during the U.S. ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, October 26, 2025.
Vincent Thian//AP SWIMMING POOL
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Vincent Thian//AP SWIMMING POOL
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — A trade deal between the United States and China is moving closer, officials from the world’s two largest economies said Sunday as they reached an initial consensus that President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping should aim to finalize at their high-stakes meeting.
Any agreement would be a relief for international markets, even if it does not resolve underlying problems related to manufacturing imbalances and access to cutting-edge computer chips.
Beijing recently restricted exports of rare earth elements needed for cutting-edge technologies, and Trump responded by threatening to impose additional tariffs on Chinese products. The prospect of wider conflict risks weakening global economic growth.
China’s top trade negotiator, Li Chenggang, told reporters that the two sides had reached a “preliminary consensus,” while Trump’s Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said there was “a very successful framework.”
Trump also expressed confidence that a deal was within reach, saying the Chinese “want to make a deal and we want to make a deal.” The Republican president is due to meet Xi on Thursday in South Korea, the last stop on his trip to Asia. Trump reiterated that he plans to visit China in the future and suggested that Xi could come to Washington or Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s private club in Florida.
Bessent told CBS’s “Face the Nation” that the threat of additional, higher tariffs on China was “effectively averted.” In interviews with several U.S. news shows, he said discussions with China had resulted in initial agreements to prevent fentanyl precursor chemicals from entering the United States, and that Beijing would make “substantial” purchases of soybeans and other agricultural products while deferring export controls on rare earths.
Progress toward a possible deal came at the annual Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit in Kuala Lumpur, where Trump sought to burnish his reputation as an international negotiator.
Yet his deal-making style has led to serious disruption at home and abroad. His import taxes have muddied relations with his trading partners, while the U.S. government shutdown has brought him into disputes with Democrats.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reacts during a meeting between President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, October 26, 2025.
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Trump attends Thailand-Cambodia ceasefire ceremony
At the summit, Thailand and Cambodia signed an expanded ceasefire agreement in a ceremony attended by Trump. His threats of economic pressure prompted the two countries to end skirmishes along their disputed border earlier this year.
Thailand will release Cambodian prisoners and Cambodia will begin withdrawing its heavy artillery under the first phase of the deal. Regional observers will monitor the situation to ensure fighting does not resume.
“We did something that a lot of people said was impossible,” Trump said. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet called it a “historic day”, and Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said the agreement created “the building blocks for lasting peace”.
The president signed economic framework agreements with Cambodia, Thailand and Malaysia, some aimed at increasing trade in essential minerals. The United States wants to rely less on China, which has used its limited exports of key components in technology manufacturing as a bargaining chip in trade negotiations.
“It is very important that we cooperate as willing partners with each other to ensure that we can have smooth and secure supply chains, for quality of life, for our people and for security,” said U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
President Donald Trump, center left, poses with other leaders during the U.S. ASEAN Summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Sunday, Oct. 26, 2025.
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Trump reconnects with a key region of the world
Trump only attended the summit once during his first term, and U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth appeared unfamiliar with ASEAN during his confirmation hearing in January.
This year’s event was an opportunity for Trump to reconnect with countries that have a combined economy of $3.8 trillion and 680 million people.
“The United States stands with you 100 percent and we intend to be a strong partner and friend for many generations to come,” Trump said. He described his counterparts as “spectacular leaders” and said “everything you touch turns to gold.”
Trump’s tariff threats have been credited with helping to spur negotiations between Thailand and Cambodia. Some of the worst modern fighting between the two countries took place over five days in July, killing dozens and displacing hundreds of thousands.
The president then threatened to suspend trade deals unless the fighting stopped. Since then, a fragile truce has persisted.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim welcomed the agreement between Thailand and Cambodia, telling the summit that “it reminds us that reconciliation is not a concession, but an act of courage.”
Tariffs at the center of Trump’s trip
Trump met with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Kuala Lumpur, who was also attending the summit. There has been friction between them over Brazil’s prosecution of Jair Bolsonaro, the country’s former president and close Trump ally. Bolsonaro was convicted last month of trying to overturn his country’s election results.
During their meeting, Trump said he might reduce tariffs on Brazil that he passed in an effort to show leniency to Bolsonaro.
“I think we should be able to make good deals for both countries,” he said.
While Trump grew closer to Lula, he avoided Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. The president is angry with Canada over a TV ad protesting his trade policies, and on his way to the summit he announced on social media that he would raise tariffs on Canada because of it.
One leader absent from the summit was Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Although he was close to Trump during his first term, the relationship has become more strained of late. Trump sparked irritation by boasting about resolving a recent dispute between India and Pakistan and by raising tariffs on India on its purchases of Russian oil.
