Trump and Xi to Meet Next Week, Iran War Predicted to Overshadow Tariff Negotiations

The Iran conflict is expected to become the main focus in the meeting between United States President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping next week. This situation is assessed as potentially reducing the scope for discussing trade issues, including tariffs and rare earth supplies. Quoted from CNBC on Friday (8/5/2026), US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent previously confirmed that the Iran issue would be one of the main agenda items in the meeting scheduled for 14-15 May 2026. Earlier this week, China also received a visit from the Iranian Foreign Minister for the first time since the war broke out at the end of February. However, the situation has heated up again after the US and Iran exchanged attacks in the Strait of Hormuz. The two countries have mutually blamed each other as the party that initiated the attack. A few days earlier, an oil tanker owned by a Chinese company was reported to have been attacked. Chinese media Caixin reported the incident, although CNBC has not been able to independently verify the news. Director of International Political Studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Hai Zhao, said that the end of the Iran war would be good news for global business. “The end of the Iran war would be a great relief for global business,” Zhao stated. On the other hand, the involvement of US businesspeople in Trump’s visit to China is expected to be more limited compared to previous state visits. A US executive familiar with the visit preparations said the US government rejected China’s invitation to hold a special meeting between senior Chinese officials and US company CEOs. Washington is concerned that such a step would create the impression that US companies are too close to Beijing. As of Tuesday (5/5/2026), the White House is said not to have officially invited executives to join Trump’s delegation. An initial list containing around two dozen company leaders is even reported to potentially be cut in half.