Bessent Meets Chinese Vice Premier in Manhattan Ahead of Trump-Xi Summit

The preparatory talks signal that the Trump administration is using cabinet-level economic diplomacy to structure the agenda before a presidential meeting, a sequencing that has historically...

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent met with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng at the newly opened JPMorgan Chase headquarters in midtown Manhattan on Sunday, September 20, 2026, according to reporting by the New York Post. The meeting began shortly after 10 a.m. And was described by participants as intended to lay groundwork for a summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, expected later in the week in Washington.

Bessent described the goal of Sunday's session in terms that emphasized process over outcome. "I'm looking forward to focused, fulsome and constructive talks today that will set the stage for leaders meeting in Washington," he said, per the New York Post report. Neither the Treasury Department nor the White House has publicly released a formal agenda for either the preparatory meeting or the subsequent presidential summit as of the time of publication.

He Lifeng, who serves as China's Vice Premier with responsibility for economic and financial policy, is the principal counterpart to Bessent in bilateral trade and currency discussions. He holds membership in the Politburo and reports directly to Xi Jinping. His presence in New York places the talks at a senior level on both sides, though below the head-of-state tier that the Trump-Xi meeting would represent.

The choice of the JPMorgan Chase headquarters as a venue is notable in practical terms. The building, described in the New York Post report as "newly minted," is a private commercial facility. The Treasury Department has not released a statement explaining the venue selection. It is not known whether JPMorgan Chase executives participated in or were present for any portion of the discussions. That information would be disclosed, if at all, in a Treasury Department readout or in lobbying disclosures filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act if any registered lobbyists were involved.

U.S.-China trade relations have been governed in part by tariffs and trade agreements negotiated under executive authority. The current tariff schedule between the two countries, maintained under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 and additional executive orders, affects hundreds of billions of dollars in annual bilateral goods trade, according to figures published by the Office of the United States Trade Representative. The specific trade provisions under discussion in Sunday's meeting have not been disclosed publicly.

Cabinet-level pre-summit meetings between U.S. And Chinese economic officials have been a recurring feature of bilateral diplomacy across administrations. During the first Trump administration, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin and Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer conducted multiple rounds of talks with Chinese counterparts before the Phase One trade agreement was signed in January 2020, a deal documented in the Federal Register (85 Fed. Reg. 3,741). The current round of talks has not been linked publicly to any specific agreement framework.

The timing of Bessent's meeting coincides with the United Nations General Assembly session in New York, which has drawn numerous foreign leaders and senior officials to the city this week. TCT previously reported on related diplomatic activity at the margins of UNGA, including National Security Advisor Mike Waltz's remarks on Iran sanctions enforcement delivered to member nations during the same week.

Bessent was confirmed as Treasury Secretary by the Senate in January 2025. His financial disclosure filings, required under the Ethics in Government Act and available through the Office of Government Ethics, documented prior financial relationships with hedge fund and investment management entities before he assumed office. Those disclosures are public record but are not directly relevant to the substance of Sunday's trade talks.

The scope of any deliverables from the Trump-Xi summit remains unknown as of publication. Documents that would clarify the outcomes include a formal joint statement, any signed memoranda of understanding, or subsequent Federal Register notices if executive trade actions result from the meeting. If tariff modifications are agreed upon, those would require either a presidential proclamation or a formal USTR proceeding, both of which are public. The timeline for any such disclosures is not known.