Phone Call Between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi — Direct Meeting Likely Soon to Improve Trade Relations

Phone Call Between President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi — Direct Meeting Likely Soon to Improve Trade Relations

[Washington, June 6, 2025]
U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping participated in an extended phone call on Thursday, arranged at the request of the White House. During the conversation, the two leaders discussed plans for an upcoming face-to-face meeting aimed at enhancing bilateral trade relations.

According to China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the call lasted until 9 a.m. Eastern Time. Trump later posted on Truth Social, stating that the call lasted about 90 minutes, with trade being the main topic. The two countries’ representatives are now planning a new meeting, though no location has been finalized yet.

This marks the first official phone call between Trump and Xi since the beginning of Trump’s second term, although they had communicated once prior to Trump’s inauguration in January.

A Tough Deal, But Personal Admiration

Early Wednesday morning, Trump wrote on his platform:

“I like President Xi of China, always have and always will, but he is very tough, and making a deal with him is VERY difficult!!!”

Trade War, Tariffs, and Geneva Agreement

Since the start of Trump’s second term, the U.S.-China trade war has intensified, with both countries slapping hundreds of billions of dollars’ worth of tariffs on each other’s goods.
Currently, the U.S. imposes about 30% tariffs on imports from China — down from a peak of 145% before the Geneva agreement. Under that deal, China also reduced its tariffs on U.S. goods from 125% to 10%.

However, last week Trump accused China of violating the agreement, though he provided no details. In response, China leveled the same accusation against Trump on Monday.

A Chinese spokesperson stated that President Xi stressed during the call that Beijing has implemented the Geneva deal in good faith, and urged the U.S. to withdraw negative measures.

Significant Drop in Trade Deficit

Data released Thursday showed that the U.S. trade deficit fell to $19.7 billion in April, the lowest since 2020.
According to Wells Fargo’s analysis, the decline is attributed to a drop in demand for surplus inventories created by excessive imports during the first quarter.

TikTok and Fentanyl Issues

Beyond trade, the Trump administration is also dealing with the forced sale of TikTok. Parent company ByteDance must sell the app by June 19, or it will be banned in the United States. So far, little progress has been made on this front.

Although seizures of fentanyl at the Mexican border have declined, critics within the administration say no effective steps have yet been taken to stop the flow of fentanyl from China, which remains a concern.

Criticism and Uncertainty

Despite repeated promises of trade deals and political agreements, a comprehensive trade agreement has yet to materialize.
Even the UK deal announced last month remains largely symbolic, adding to global uncertainty in investment and hiring decisions rather than offering economic stability.