China, US agree to $30 billion tariff cut, AI dialogue during Xi visit

China and the United States have agreed to a $30 billion reciprocal tariff-reduction arrangement and to open a dialogue on artificial intelligence, as part of an eight-point consensus reached during Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Washington, China's state news agency Xinhua reported.

The consensus was reached over a three-day visit, Xi's first state visit to the US in 11 years, and marks the second in-person meeting between Xi and US President Donald Trump this year, following their summit in Beijing in May.

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What the two sides agreed on

The White House, in a statement issued late Friday, said China and the US had reached consensus on "recommendations for more favourable" tariff treatment for $30 billion worth of non-sensitive goods in each direction. The two sides also agreed on initiatives to expand agricultural market access and to help stabilise global petroleum supply.

On artificial intelligence, the two countries agreed to set up a dedicated bilateral dialogue to address the risks and benefits of the technology, with the next session scheduled for November, along with a separate communication channel to handle AI-related incidents.

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. They also recalled that China and the United States fought as allies in World War Two.

The remaining points of the consensus covered mutual support for each other's hosting of the upcoming APEC and G20 summits, reaffirmed commitments on Iran's nuclear programme and tolls on international waterways, and progress on joint anti-narcotics enforcement that has led to dozens of arrests linked to psychoactive substances. On the military side, the two sides agreed on a memorandum of understanding for crisis communication and prevention, and on continuing efforts to recover the remains of missing US military personnel in China.

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The White House said Xi and Trump had discussed "fostering peace and prosperity" and agreed to build "a constructive relationship of strategic stability" based on respect, fairness and reciprocity.

Xi arrived in Washington with his wife, Peng Liyuan, for the state visit. During the trip, Melania Trump and Peng Liyuan visited the National Archives Museum together, and the two couples had tea in the Red Room at the White House.

The $30 billion tariff arrangement builds on discussions that began at the Trump-Xi summit in Busan, South Korea, in October last year, where the two sides described their trade talks as having reached a "basic consensus," and continued at the Beijing summit in May this year, when Trump and Xi agreed to set up joint trade and investment boards.