The White House officials confirmed on Monday (May 11) that President Trump will lead a delegation of business executives to accompany him on his summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in China.
Representatives from industries such as aerospace, agriculture, finance, and technology will attend the bilateral talks to discuss tariffs, trade agreements, technology exports control, and other issues related to business interactions between the two countries.
During this trip, a series of plans are expected to be announced, including new orders for aircraft and other American-made products, relaxing technology and semiconductor access, as well as financial agreements that will facilitate trade.
Tech and aerospace entrepreneurs such as Elon Musk from SpaceX, Tim Cook from Apple, Kelly Ortberg from Boeing, Larry Fink from BlackRock, and Stephen Schwarzman, the co-founder of Blackstone, are among the 16 business leaders accompanying the delegation.
Additionally, Brian Sikes from Cargill will represent the agriculture sector; Jane Fraser from Citi, Michael Miebach from Mastercard, Ryan McInerney from Visa, and David Solomon from Goldman Sachs will help lead negotiations on financial and investment agreements.
The list of business leaders also includes Chuck Robbins from Cisco, Jim Anderson from Coherent, H. Lawrence Culp from GE Aerospace, Jacob Thaysen from Illumina, Dina Powell McCormick from Meta, Sanjay Mehrotra from Micron, and Cristiano Amon from Qualcomm. This list demonstrates the importance the Trump administration places on economic diplomacy.
This delegation brings together major industries in the US-China economic relationship.
President Trump is scheduled to visit China from May 13th to 15th. This will be the first time a US president has visited China since Trump’s first term in 2017.
It is expected that Trump and Xi Jinping will also discuss other issues, including the Iran conflict, commercial navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, and the Taiwan question.
“I think he will be more proactive than me in mentioning Taiwan,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday. “But I believe the discussions will involve energy and that very beautiful country—Iran.”
He will also discuss the persecution of Pastor Ezra Jin and media mogul Jimmy Lai with Chinese officials.
“Jimmy Lai has brought a lot of unrest to China. He is trying to do the right thing,” Trump said. “Although he did not succeed and eventually ended up in prison, people hope for his release. I would also be happy to see him freed.”
Trump’s last meeting with Xi Jinping was in October 2025 in South Korea, where they discussed trade, security, and other issues.
Xi Jinping is expected to visit the US during Trump’s tenure, but the White House has not yet finalized a date for his visit.