China’s Commerce Minister Wang Wentao held a press conference at the conclusion of the APEC Commerce Ministers’ Meeting in Suzhou, China, May 23, 2026.
CNBC | Evelyn Cheng
SUZHOU, China — A little more than a week after the presidents of the United States and China met in Beijing, the world’s two largest economies are sending different messages about their priorities for Asia.
Firstly, there is the matter of tariffs.
China’s economy relies heavily on exports – and free trade – as they account for about 28% of the world’s manufactured goods, according to CNBC calculations of World Bank data.
Beijing’s statements to the summit of Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump last week noted that tariffs will remain low for longer, while the U.S. made no mention of the tariffs.
Then on Saturday, Chinese Trade Minister Wang Wentao told reporters that confirming the “vision” of a free trade agreement was a key outcome of the just-concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Trade Ministers’ Meeting.
“Faced with increasing uncertain and destabilizing factors in global and regional economic development, members turned their attention to the FTAAP (Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area) with a commitment to further advance economic integration through the FTAAP agenda,” Wang said in Chinese, according to an official English translation.
However, when CNBC asked a member of the US delegation about FTAAP and free trade a day earlier, the answer focused on balanced trade, part of the Trump administration’s rationale for tariffs.
“FTAAP is actually more of an agenda than a kind of goal,” said Casey K. Mace, the senior U.S. official at the APEC forum. He noted that the US has been “active” on elements of the FTAAP such as competitiveness, labor standards and trade facilitation.
China is hosting this year’s APEC meetings, which will culminate with a high-level meeting in Shenzhen in November. Trump and Xi are also expected to meet at the event.
“Constructive strategic stability”
Second, what’s next for the US and China?
So far, there are few details on how the two sides will move forward in implementing “constructive strategic stability,” beyond purchasing 200 Boeing aircraft and US agricultural products worth $17 billion a year through 2028.
According to a Chinese report published early Saturday, Wang met with Rick Switzer, deputy U.S. trade representative and head of the U.S. delegation to the APEC trade ministers’ meeting, in Suzhou on Thursday.
The reading said both sides hoped to reach an agreement as quickly as possible on the details of the economic outcomes of the Trump-Xi meeting – an indication that differences remain.
The U.S. Embassy in Beijing and the U.S. State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The AI race
Thirdly, it is about expanding the technology race between the USA and China to Asia.
A “new consensus” was reached on cooperation in digital trade at the meeting of APEC trade ministers, Wang said.
When asked to elaborate, Lin Feng, director general of the Department of International Trade and Economic Relations at China’s Ministry of Commerce, mentioned plans to make it easier for e-commerce companies to do business in the region and a “commitment to strengthening AI-related trade exchanges.”
Lin referred to efforts to “reduce the digital divide” but did not specifically mention Chinese AI companies.
While the U.S. has restricted Chinese companies’ access to advanced semiconductors for training AI models, Chinese companies are tending to bring to market AI models that are inexpensive – if not free – to use and whose capabilities are increasingly closing the gap on their U.S. competitors.
On the U.S. side, Mace highlighted plans to “continue to position U.S. technology companies, digital companies, as market leaders in the region.”
Mace said U.S. technology firms would hold workshops at an APEC “digital week” in Chengdu in July. Although China is the host of the event, “it is an opportunity to engage with all 21.” [APEC] economies,” he added.
The United States is one of the twelve founding members of APEC, which was launched in Australia in 1989 as an informal forum for discussions on free trade and economic cooperation. The multilateral trade organization now has 21 members, including mainland China, Hong Kong and Chinese Taipei, which joined the forum in 1991.
Wang did not comment on the “urgent official matters” that prevented him from chairing the opening session on Friday.
Choose CNBC as your preferred source on Google and never miss a moment from the most trusted name in business news.