US, China Trade Chiefs to Hold Seoul Talks Before Trump-Xi Summit

Senior US and Chinese trade negotiators will meet in Seoul on May 13, ahead of President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping on May 14-15.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent wrote in a social media post on May 10 that he would travel to Japan and South Korea for a series of meetings before Trump’s visit to Beijing.

He is scheduled to discuss US-Japan economic ties in Tokyo on May 12 with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and other government and private-sector figures. Bessent will then travel to Seoul on May 13 for talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng.

China also confirmed the meeting. A spokesperson for China’s Commerce Ministry said on the ministry’s website that He, a vice premier of the State Council, will visit South Korea on May 12-13 for economic and trade talks with the US side.

The ministry said the negotiations would cover economic and trade issues of mutual interest based on the consensus reached by the two leaders at their Busan summit and in several phone calls.

It remains unclear whether Bessent will also meet separately in South Korea with Koo Yun-cheol, South Korea’s deputy prime minister and finance minister. No detailed schedule for talks between Seoul and Washington has been announced.

"Economic security is national security," Bessent wrote, adding that he hoped the meetings would help advance Trump’s America First economic agenda.

Shin Yong-hyun, Hankyung.com reporter yonghyun@hankyung.com