Prospect of Trump-Xi talks raises hope for thaw in trade war
BEIJING (AP) — With China and the United States opening the door to a meeting next month between Presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump, hopes are rising for a potential easing of tensions in the trade war between the world’s two largest economies.
Worries about the increased tariffs the two sides have imposed on each other’s goods have contributed to this week’s dizzying volatility in financial markets. The higher tariffs have elevated costs for companies in both countries, and economists say that if they remain in place indefinitely, they could depress economic growth.
A Xi-Trump meeting, if it happens, would take place during a summit of leaders of the Group of 20 biggest global economies in Argentina in late November.
In Bali, Indonesia, where he’s attending global finance meetings, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, “We are having discussions about a potential meeting.”
Later Friday, Larry Kudlow, Trump’s top economic adviser, said in Washington that preparations for the talks were under way.
“It looks like there will be a meeting in Buenos Aires at the G-20,” Kudlow said in an interview with CNBC. “We are looking at it. The Chinese are looking at it. Preparations are being made. I can’t say 100 percent certainty, but there is no question everybody is looking at it.”
LONDON (AP) — Global business leaders are reassessing their ties with Saudi Arabia, stoking pressure on the Gulf kingdom to explain what happened to a dissident writer who disappeared after visiting its consulate in Istanbul.
British billionaire Richard Branson on Friday suspended business links with Saudi Arabia, and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said he might not attend a major investment conference in the country this month amid reports that Jamal Khashoggi may have been killed at the Saudi consulate in Turkey’s financial center.
“What has reportedly happened in Turkey around the disappearance of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, if proved true, would clearly change the ability of any of us in the West to do business with the Saudi government,” Branson said in a statement.
Branson, founder of Virgin Group, says he will suspend his role as director in two tourism projects in Saudi Arabia while an investigation takes place. He also is putting on hold discussions about a proposed Saudi investment in space companies Virgin Galactic and Virgin Orbit.
Saudi Arabia is facing increasing international pressure to clarify what happened to Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist, with U.S. President Donald Trump and British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt among those demanding answers.
Khosrowshahi is scheduled to speak at the Future Investment Initiative conference, and event loosely nicknamed the “Davos of the Desert” that takes place Oct. 23-25 in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
“I’m very troubled by the reports to date about Jamal Khashoggi,” Khosrowshahi said. “We are following the situation closely, and unless a substantially different set of facts emerges, I won’t be attending the FII conference in Riyadh.”
The decision could put Khosrowshahi and Uber in an awkward spot because Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund owns about a 5.6 percent stake in the privately held ride-hailing app. The fund invested $3.5 billion 2016 as Uber was growing quickly.