Trump says he expects to reach deal with China on trade, soybeans, possibly nuclear arms

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that he planned discuss China's purchases of Russian oil and how to stop Russia's war in Ukraine, now in its third year.

"I think we'll make a deal," Trump told reporters during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, adding he believed that Xi had shifted his thinking on the war in Ukraine and would be receptive to a discussion about ending the war.

"He would now like - I'm not sure that he did at the beginning - he would now like that war to end," he said.

Trump's comments stood in contrast to more strident remarks from his top trade negotiator and finance chief, who were headed to Asia on Wednesday to keep Trump's meeting with Xi, the first of his second term, on track.

The U.S. president downplayed the importance of China's curbs on exports of rare earth magnets that have roiled markets, calling it "a disturbance" and describing tariffs as a "more powerful" issue.

Trump, under pressure from U.S. farmers reeling from big drops in Chinese orders for soybeans, said he expected to reach some agreement with Xi on the issue.

A deal was also possible on nuclear arms, he said, noting that Russian President Vladimir Putin had raised the prospect of a bilateral de-escalation of nuclear weapons, and China could be added to that effort.

Trade tensions between the U.S. and China, the world's two biggest economies, flared in recent weeks after months of relative calm. Trump imposed additional duties of 100% on China that are due to take effect on November 1 after China announced export controls on nearly all rare earths.

TOP US OFFICIALS HEAD TO ASIA

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer were headed to Malaysia to defuse tensions over Beijing's rare earth export curbs, as officials in Washington prepared to hit Beijing with fresh measures if no deals are reached.

Reuters reported earlier that the Trump administration is considering a plan to curb a wide range of software-powered exports to China, from laptops to jet engines, to retaliate against Beijing, following Trump's threat earlier this month to bar "critical software" exports to China.

Bessent said Greer was already en route to Kuala Lumpur and he would head there later on Wednesday, before joining Trump for the rest of his Asia trip.

"This is China versus the globe. It's not just on the U.S.," Bessent told Fox Business Network's "Kudlow" program. "This licensing regime that they've proposed is unworkable and unacceptable."

He said the U.S. and its Western allies were contemplating how to respond if they were unable to negotiate a pause in Beijing's plans or some other relief, but gave no details.

"I'm hoping that we can get this ironed out this weekend so that the leaders can enter their talks on a more positive note," he said. Bessent described the planned Trump-Xi meeting as a "pull-aside", in what may be an attempt to dampen expectations.

Trump is scheduled to travel to Kuala Lumpur for a meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations that begins on Sunday, and later that week is expected in South Korea ahead of a leaders' summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum that is being held October 31-November 1 in Gyeongju.

Bessent said Trump would also stop in Japan to meet the new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi.

The U.S. Treasury chief said he was optimistic that two days of "fulsome" talks with Chinese officials would lay the groundwork for a good meeting of the two leaders, noting that Trump had great respect for Xi.

CHINA VIOLATED COMMITMENTS, GREER SAYS

Washington also announced sweeping new sanctions against two Russian oil companies, but stopped short of imposing tariffs on China, one of the largest buyers of Russian oil, as it has done with India, another big purchaser.

Greer and Bessent have both stressed they do not want to decouple from China, or escalate the situation, but insist the United States needs to rebalance trade with China after decades of very limited access to Chinese markets.

Trump has sent conflicting signals on the Xi meeting in recent days, telling reporters on Tuesday that it might not happen.

Greer told CNBC's "Squawk Box" that China's rare earth measures violated a commitment its officials had made months ago to keep supplying rare earths needed for high technology, but said the U.S. and China could find a new balance for trade in non-sensitive goods. China also had unfulfilled obligations to buy U.S. agricultural and manufactured goods under a trade deal signed during Trump's first term as president, he said.

"The U.S. has always been quite open to the Chinese, and it's really been driven by Chinese policies that exclude U.S. companies and drive overcapacity and overproduction in China. None of that works for the United States," he said. "We can't live that way anymore so we need an alternative path."