FT: Tariffs and fentanyl question cloud prospect of Trump-Xi summit in Beijing

China has formally invited Donald Trump to Beijing for a summit with President Xi Jinping, but the White House has not yet responded as the countries are still far apart on trade issues and the flow of fentanyl, according to Financial Times (FT), Report informs.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will on Sunday meet Chinese vice-premier He Lifeng in Madrid for a fourth round of negotiations that some hope will pave the way for President Trump to visit Beijing just before the October 31 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum in South Korea.

In recent days, two US cabinet officials - Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth - have spoken to their Chinese counterparts, raising speculation about a meeting between the presidents.

But insufficient progress in the US-China talks have reduced the odds of a Beijing summit and made it more likely that Trump and Xi will hold a lower profile meeting at APEC, according to people familiar with the situation.

Sarah Beran, a former top White House China official, said the calls and Madrid meeting were "clear preparations for a leader-level meeting" but it was unclear where the leaders would meet.

"There are likely still contradictory views on whether Trump and Xi should meet in Beijing or at Apec," said Beran, now a partner at the consultancy Macro Advisory Partners. "On top of this, Beijing is still trying to work out what the Trump Administration wants - a real deal, perpetual negotiations, or a photo op in Beijing?"

One person familiar with the talks said a big stumbling block was US frustration at Beijing for not cracking down on the export of chemicals used to make fentanyl, a deadly synthetic opioid.

Beijing has offered to take action, but only in tandem with the US eliminating fentanyl-related tariffs that Trump imposed on China. The US insists that China should take action and show results before any tariff relief.