Trump says made 'fantastic trade deals' with Xi as pair meets for final meetings of superpower summit

United States President Donald Trump said he made “fantastic trade deals” with Xi Jinping, as the pair met on Friday at final meetings of a superpower summit that, according to the US leader, has also reaped a Chinese offer to help open the Strait of Hormuz. Trump had arrived in Beijing seeking to seal deals in sectors including agriculture, aviation and artificial intelligence, as well as to contain differences between the two sides in a number of tense geostrategic areas — not least the Middle East war. Trump’s overtures to Xi, whom he described as a “great leader” and “friend”, have so far been met with more muted tones by the Chinese leader. But the US leader said “a lot of good” has come out of the visit. “We’ve made some fantastic trade deals, great for both countries,” he said, as Xi accompanied him through the gardens of Zhongnanhai, a central leadership compound next to Beijing’s Forbidden City. In an interview with Fox News after the first day of the summit wrapped, Trump said the talks in Beijing had gone well and that Xi had agreed to several US wishlist points. On the topic of the war in Iran, the US president said Xi had effectively assured his counterpart that China was not preparing to militarily aid Tehran, which has essentially closed the Strait of Hormuz. “He said he’s not going to give military equipment … he said that strongly,” Trump told Fox. “He’d like to see the Hormuz Strait open, and said ‘if I can be of any help whatsoever, I would like to help,’” Trump added. Asked whether the two leaders had discussed Iran, the Chinese foreign ministry on Friday released a statement calling for “a comprehensive and lasting ceasefire”. “Shipping lanes should be reopened as soon as possible in response to the calls of the international community,” it added. Boeing, soybeans and oil The warm handshakes and pomp on Thursday were somewhat overshadowed by a blunt warning from Xi on a much longer-standing geopolitical flashpoint, Taiwan. Shortly after talks st