October 29, 2025

President Donald Trump heads into a historic meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping facing a delicate test: projecting strength against America’s top adversary without triggering another economic shock at home.

The high-stakes encounter, the first between the two men in more than six years, comes after months of tariff feints and escalating rhetoric that have rattled markets and strained global supply chains — and at a moment when Trump is eager to prove that his economic nationalism can still deliver concrete wins.

Administration officials are voicing confidence that Trump and Xi will step back from the brink of a second trade war when they meet Thursday morning local time in South Korea, but even a small misstep could send markets spiraling, as they did when Trump last imposed triple-digit tariffs on Chinese imports in April. Markets have grown accustomed to Trump’s tariff back-and-forths over the last 10 months, but investors remain queasy over the specter of new levies, like the 100 percent the president is now threatening.

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