Chinese Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao held a press conference on May 23, 2026, following the APEC Trade Ministers’ Meeting in Suzhou, China.
CNBC | Evelyn Cheng
SUZHOU, China — A little more than a week after the U.S. and Chinese presidents met in Beijing, the world’s two largest economies are sending different messages about their priorities for Asia.
First there are the prices.
China’s economy relies heavily on exports – and free trade – as they account for about 28% of goods manufactured worldwide, according to CNBC calculations. World Bank data.
Beijing’s summit statements by Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump last week highlighted the extent to which rights will remain lower for longer, while the United States did not mention the prices.
Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao told reporters on Saturday that affirming the “vision” for a free trade deal was one of the key outcomes of the just-concluded Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation trade ministers’ meeting.
“Amid growing uncertain and destabilizing factors in global and regional economic development, members have shifted their attention to the FTAAP (Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area) with the commitment to continue advancing economic integration through the FTAAP agenda,” Wang said in Chinese, according to an official English translation.
However, when CNBC asked a member of the U.S. delegation a day earlier about FTAAP and free trade, the response focused on trade balance, which is part of the Trump administration’s justification for the tariffs.
“FTAAP is really more of a program than a sort of destination,” said Casey K. Mace, a senior U.S. official at the APEC Forum. He noted that the United States was “active” in elements of the FTAAP such as competitiveness, labor standards and trade facilitation.
China is host to this year’s APEC meetings, culminating in November with a high-level meeting in Shenzhen. Trump and Xi are also expected to meet alongside this event.
“Constructive strategic stability”Second, what’s next for the United States and China?
There are few details at this time on how the two sides will move forward in implementing “constructive strategic stability” beyond China’s purchase of 200 Boeing planes and $17 billion a year in U.S. agricultural products through 2028.
According to a Chinese statement released Saturday morning, Wang met Thursday in Suzhou Rick Switzerlandthe Deputy United States Trade Representative and head of the American delegation for the APEC Trade Ministers Meeting.
The statement said the two sides hope 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.
Read more news about ChinaThe race for AIThird, there is the expansion of the American and Chinese technological race to Asia.
The APEC Trade Ministers’ Meeting reached a “new consensus” on digital trade cooperation, 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, highlighted plans to facilitate e-commerce companies’ operations in the region, as well as a “commitment to strengthening AI-related trade.”
Lin highlighted efforts to “bridge the digital divide,” but did not mention Chinese AI companies in particular.
As the United States has restricted Chinese companies’ ability to access advanced semiconductors to train AI models, Chinese companies have tended to launch AI models that are cheap or even free to use and whose capabilities are increasingly narrowing the gap with their American rivals.
On the American side, Mace emphasized his intention to “continue to position American technology companies, digital companies, as leaders in the region.”
Mace said US tech companies would give workshops at a APEC “digital week” in Chengdu in July. Even though China is the host of the event, “it is an opportunity to engage with the 21 [APEC] savings,” he added.
The United States is one of 12 founding members of APECwhich was launched in 1989 in Australia 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 “urgent official business” this had prevented him from presiding over the opening session on Friday.