NEW YORK, Sept. 20—U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng are meeting in New York on Sunday to discuss artificial intelligence, tariffs, critical minerals, and other economic issues ahead of a planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is also expected to attend the talks, which are being held at the headquarters of JPMorgan Chase in Manhattan. The office of the U.S. Trade Representative confirmed that Greer would join Bessent for a meeting with He ahead of the U.S.-China summit in Washington.

The talks come as Washington and Beijing seek to manage a fragile trade relationship. Topics include the fate of a trade truce that is due to expire Nov. 10, Chinese exports of rare-earth magnets and other critical minerals, and possible ways to manage risks from advanced artificial intelligence.

The issue was a priority in the discussions ahead of the presidential summit. A U.S. official said China had not met Washington’s expectations for implementation of commitments on critical minerals.

The talks are also expected to revisit commitments and disputes left over from a May meeting between Trump and Xi. Those include potential reductions in tariffs on non-strategic goods and Chinese commitments to increase purchases of U.S. farm products and Boeing aircraft.

Instead of seeking a full solution to all the disputes, the talks could aim for limited steps that would allow the two sides to keep talking and avoid a new wave of trade tensions.

He has previously participated in economic negotiations with U.S. officials, while Bessent and Greer have been involved in a series of negotiations to prepare for deals between Trump and Xi.

The current set-up follows a trade truce in Busan, South Korea, in November 2025, after tariffs between the world's two biggest economies had soared. The agreement lowered certain tariffs and included pledges from both nations.

The U.S. tariff regime was then altered after the Supreme Court ruling on Feb. 20, 2026, in a case in which President Trump had used the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose tariffs. The Court’s disposition of the cases included vacating one judgement and affirming another.

Since then the Trump administration has sought tariffs under other legal authorities. Washington has more trade investigations and actions in its toolbox regarding China.

AI in trade talks

The competition to develop advanced artificial intelligence systems is intensifying, and AI is becoming a new topic of discussion between Washington and Beijing.

Discussions could include open-weight and closed-weight A.I. models, Bessent said. Open-weight models let users download and modify the core model parameters. Closed-weight systems keep those parameters private.

The United States and China are also talking about wider risks of advanced AI, including security and misuse concerns of more capable systems.

Washington is willing to discuss shared AI risks with Beijing and does not want the two countries to develop completely separate AI ecosystems, Bessent said. He has also called for talks on safeguards, or “guard rails,” for powerful artificial intelligence systems.

The issue is particularly sensitive because the development of AI is tied to semiconductor technology and the supply chains of critical minerals and rare-earth materials.

Investment and Tariffs

Trade policy is another major issue.

In May, the United States and China agreed to hold talks on reducing tariffs on non-strategic goods under a proposed trade mechanism. The two sides also discussed investment issues, as Washington continues to impose restrictions on some types of U.S. investment in China.

Separately, the Trump administration is considering changes that could affect U.S. drug companies seeking licensing and investment opportunities with Chinese drug developers.

China’s Ministry of Commerce said Saturday he would head a delegation of Chinese firms to the United States for economic and trade consultations ahead of the presidential summit.

Trump said he would be open to Chinese carmakers building plants in the United States. Meanwhile, auto industry groups in the U.S. have been lobbying the administration to keep restrictions on sales of Chinese vehicles, citing national security concerns.

The outcome of the New York discussions is expected to help set the agenda for what is presented to Trump and Xi when they meet in Washington. The two leaders are scheduled to meet on Sept. 24.