Economy
In Beijing, Trump to push Xi to ‘open up’ China
President Donald Trump arrived in Beijing on Wednesday for a two-day summit with Xi Jinping, receiving a lavish welcome alongside an entourage that included Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and Elon Musk, as he prepared to press China to “open up” to U.S. business.
Trump is seeking to snag some economic wins on the first visit by a U.S. president to China in nearly a decade and maintain a fragile trade truce to prop up public approval ratings bruised by his war with Iran.
He was welcomed by Chinese dignitaries, a tightly choreographed formation of military honor guard and dozens of Chinese students waving U.S. and Chinese flags as he disembarked Air Force One in the waning hours of twilight on Wednesday.
Pausing midway down the red carpet as the students chanted “welcome, welcome, warm welcome” in Mandarin, he punched the air and smiled broadly before departing in his limousine.
The CEOs accompanying Trump are drawn mainly from companies seeking to resolve business issues with China, such as Nvidia, which has struggled to get regulatory permission to sell its powerful H200 artificial intelligence chips there.
Trump asked Huang at the last minute to join the trip, said a source familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity, and he was spotted boarding Air Force One during a refueling stop in Alaska en route to Beijing.
“I will be asking President Xi, a Leader of extraordinary distinction, to ‘open up’ China so that these brilliant people can work their magic,” he said in a post on Truth Social, referring to the CEO delegation.
“I will make that my very first request.”
Asked about Trump’s post, Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, said Beijing stands ready to “expand cooperation, manage differences and inject more stability and certainty into the turbulent world.”
As Trump prepared for the pomp-filled occasion, his trade negotiator, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, wrapped up three hours of preparatory talks with Chinese officials in South Korea. China’s official Xinhua news agency described them as “candid, in-depth and constructive,” but officials did not offer any detailed summary.
Trump’s two days of meetings will include a grand reception at The Great Hall of the People, a tour of Beijing’s 600-year-old Temple of Heaven imperial religious complex, and a state banquet.
Apart from trade, the talks will cover a host of sensitive subjects from the Iran war to U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, the island that China regards as part of its territory.
Trump is widely expected to encourage China to convince Tehran to make a deal with Washington to end the conflict, though he has said he did not think he would need its help.
China reiterated on Wednesday its strong opposition to U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, with the status of a $14 billion package awaiting Trump’s approval still unclear.
The United States is bound by law to provide Taiwan with the means to defend itself, despite a lack of formal diplomatic ties.
Bessent preps in South Korea
While Trump rubbed shoulders with executives aboard Air Force One, Bessent held his latest round of trade negotiations with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng at a VIP reception room at South Korea’s Incheon airport.
The talks ran about three hours to end just before 4 p.m. (0700 GMT), a U.S. official said.
The two sides are eager to maintain a truce struck last October in which Trump suspended triple-digit tariffs on Chinese goods and Xi backed away from choking global supplies of rare earths, vital in making items from electric cars to weapons.
They are also expected to discuss forums to support mutual trade and investment and dialogue on AI issues, while Washington looks to sell Boeing airplanes, farm goods and energy to China to cut a trade deficit that has long irked Trump, U.S. officials have said.
Beijing, for its part, wants the U.S. to ease curbs on exports of chipmaking equipment and advanced semiconductors.
Trump enters the talks with a weakened hand.
Courts have hemmed in his ability to levy tariffs at will on exports from China and other countries.
The Iran war has also boosted inflation at home and escalated the risk that Trump’s Republican Party will lose control of one or both legislative branches in November’s midterm elections.
Though the Chinese economy has faltered, Xi does not face comparable economic or political pressure.
“The Trump administration needs this meeting more than China does, as it needs to show to American voters that deals are signed, money is made,” said Liu Qian, founder and CEO of Wusawa Advisory, a Beijing-based geopolitical advisory firm.
While Trump has lauded his personal rapport with Xi and respect for China, several Beijing residents told Reuters they viewed his visit with a mixture of hope and suspicion.
“I don’t know if he’s genuinely sincere,” Lou Huilian, a 44-year-old who works in the oil trade, said outside a metro station as she headed to work on Wednesday.
“But speaking as a Chinese person, and as someone working in trade, I just hope some good policies can come out of this.”
Ankara and Brussels praised the momentum in their economic relations on Wednesday after a visit by a high-level delegation this week that saw series of meetings and agreements.
The delegation was accompanying Belgium’s Queen Mathilde as part of a high-level economic mission aimed at strengthening trade and investment ties between Türkiye and Belgium.
Queen Mathilde was received by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and met with top Turkish authorities, while also attending a series of meetings and events.
The delegation included 400 representatives of the Belgian federal and regional authorities, companies, federations, chambers of commerce and academic institutions.
Both sides noted that Türkiye-Belgium economic relations continue to benefit from the broader framework of Türkiye-EU relations, including the 1963 Ankara Agreement and the Türkiye-EU Customs Union.
“In this vein, they recognized the importance of the Türkiye-EU relationship and expressed support for constructive engagement, including discussions on the modernization of the Customs Union and continued facilitation of business and people-to-people mobility, in accordance with EU frameworks and benchmarks,” a joint statement said on Wednesday.
In addition to strengthening economic cooperation, they said the mission constituted an important step in building more structured and closer political relations.
Belgium last organized an economic mission to Türkiye in 2012, when the visit was led by King Philippe, then crown prince.
Talks and meetings during the five-day visit focused on strategic sectors such as energy, aerospace and defense industry, logistics and transportation, digital transformation and industry 4.0, and life sciences and pharma.
“As long-standing partners and NATO Allies, Turkish and Belgian sides noted with pleasure the momentum in their relations, facilitated by joint efforts and a shared interest in international peace and stability in view of regional and global developments,” the statement read.
Both sides said they acknowledged the deep-rooted relations and reaffirmed the contributions of the Belgian-Turkish community to political, economic, cultural and social ties.
The visit saw the signing of multiple bilateral agreements and memoranda of understanding, providing updated frameworks for cooperation and facilitating closer engagement in areas of mobility, defense, social protection and safety of agri-food products.
Officials said the two countries are aiming to increase the bilateral trade volume to $15 billion (TL 681.27 billion) in the near term.
Their trade reached $9.2 billion in 2025, including $5 billion in Turkish exports and $4.2 billion in imports.
They also expressed a major potential and a need for investments to increase.
Belgian investments in Türkiye totaled $9.3 billion between 2002 and January 2026, while Turkish investments in Belgium amounted to $490 million.
Oil cartel OPEC on Wednesday cut its forecast for global oil demand growth in 2026, joining other forecasters such as the International Energy Agency (IEA) in trimming expectations amid disruptions caused by the Iran war.
The producer group sees a smaller hit to demand than the IEA, which earlier on Wednesday increased its estimate of the decline in oil use this year. OPEC said consumption would rebound later and raised its demand growth forecast for 2027.
The war has effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, a key global oil route, curbing millions of barrels of Middle East output and sending fuel prices soaring. The surge is hitting consumers and businesses, and prompting government steps to conserve supplies.
World oil demand will rise by 1.17 million barrels per day in 2026, OPEC said, down from 1.38 million bpd expected previously. For 2027, OPEC expects oil demand to rise by 1.54 million bpd, up 200,000 bpd from the previous forecast.
“The global economic growth continues to show resilience for this year despite geopolitical tensions, particularly in the Middle East,” OPEC said, leaving its economic growth forecasts unchanged.
Global oil demand is expected to average 104.57 million bpd in the second quarter, down from the 105.07 million bpd forecast last month, OPEC said. The previous report had already cut the second-quarter estimate by 500,000 bpd.
OPEC+, which groups the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia, had agreed to resume output increases from April, but the closure of Hormuz has made it impossible to deliver on the deal. The report said output fell further in April.
OPEC+ crude output averaged 33.19 million bpd in April, down 1.74 million bpd from March, the report said, citing secondary sources OPEC uses to monitor its production.
The April figure includes the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which left OPEC on May 1.
This year’s COP31 climate summit, to be hosted and chaired by Türkiye, offers an important opportunity to address the relationship between climate change and agri-food systems, a regional representative to the U.N.’s food agency said in an interview published Wednesday.
Speaking on the sidelines of the 5th Istanbul International Water Forum, which addressed regional and global water challenges and drew a number of prominent international and regional figures to Istanbul, Viorel Gutu, U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) assistant director-general and regional representative for Europe and Central Asia, evaluated the issues of such as water use and efficiency.
Gutu told Anadolu Agency (AA) that water use in agriculture, food security, and the upcoming U.N. climate summit COP31 were among the key issues discussed at the Istanbul forum, adding that the event provides an important platform for advancing water resilience and efficiency, which are high on the global agenda.
He said he used the event to underline the importance of the link between water and agricultural and food production, noting that “70% of water use is related to food production, related to agriculture, and it is important to bring efficiency into the agenda of food producers.”
Gutu highlighted key statistics on the issue, saying water-use efficiency in agriculture stands at just $0.7 per cubic meters, compared with more than $50 in industry and over $114 in the services sector.
He said the figures point to a significant efficiency gap, adding that they also indicate major opportunities to improve water-use efficiency in the agriculture and food sectors.
An estimated 673 million people were living in hunger in 2024, while around 2.5 billion lack access to a healthy diet and face food insecurity worldwide, Gutu said.
He said the situation is becoming increasingly critical due to growing population pressures, noting that the global population is projected to reach 10 billion by 2050.
Gutu said rising population would also increase demand for food, adding, “We have to be ready to produce more using the same resources. In the last 60 years, agricultural production has tripled, but the area used for agriculture has increased only by 8%. So, it was mostly focused on productivity.”
Discussions around food security need to increase, Gutu also said.
“All of this is part of a broader system, and that is why events like this are so important – to discuss these issues, raise awareness, develop and share solutions, and advise governments on these solutions,” he added.
Moreover, Gutu said the U.N. target of limiting global warming to 1.5°C (2.7°F) is crucial to ensuring conditions capable of meeting future needs.
He added, “If we invest properly in preserving our natural resources, in efficient use, and bringing modern technologies to the ground, then it is possible. Still, when we speak about this 1.5-degree limitation, we have to be aware that we are already experiencing climate shocks, severe droughts, and different floods, events which were not characteristic to certain parts of the world. So, now, we have to invest in adaptation, also in resilience, and obviously allow and help people on the ground in the most vulnerable areas to cope with this climate stress and shocks.”
Gutu said the COP summits held under the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) are important for addressing all dimensions of climate change.
“From the FAO perspective, it is important to note that only a few COPs ago, there was finally an attempt to bring agri-food systems and agriculture onto the COP agenda. Let’s not forget that around 30% of greenhouse gas emissions come from agriculture. But agriculture is not only part of the problem, but it can also be part of the solution,” he said.
COP31, to be hosted and chaired by Türkiye this year, would provide an important opportunity to address the many dimensions of the relationship between climate change and agriculture, he noted.
“First, let me congratulate Türkiye on hosting this huge and very important global event. We also see COPs, including COP31, as an opportunity not only to raise attention but also to help mobilize climate financing for agri-food systems,” he also said.
Assessing the role of climate finance in agriculture, Gutu said agri-food systems currently face an annual financing gap.
“We are currently facing an annual financing gap of $1.3 trillion for agri-food systems. If this financing gap could be addressed through commitments made during and beyond the COP process, it would significantly advance progress toward our goals,” he said.
“I believe this represents another major opportunity, and we as the Food and Agriculture Organization will continue engaging with governments, participating in negotiations and drawing attention to agri-food systems,” he added.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng held talks on Wednesday at the Incheon International Airport in South Korea ahead of the summit between leaders of the world’s two largest economies, a U.S. official told Reuters.
The two met in South Korea to lay the groundwork ahead of the summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
The discussions were expected to cover a range of issues to prepare for talks that are set to run from Thursday to Friday.
The talks between Bessent and He were likely to be exploratory with limited immediate outcomes, said Kim Tae-hwang, a professor of international trade at Myongji University in Seoul.
“Both sides are essentially in a holding pattern ahead of the summit, sounding each other out, rather than seeking breakthroughs,” he said.
China’s lead trade negotiator, Vice Commerce Minister Li Chenggang, and Vice Finance Minister Liao Min were among the officials accompanying He.
At the Beijing summit, the leaders are expected to agree to set up forums to ease mutual trade and investment, while China is expected to announce purchases related to Boeing airplanes, American agriculture and energy, U.S. officials have said.
Beijing also wants the United States to relax curbs on exports of advanced semiconductors, and has raised concerns about a bill to keep critical chip-making equipment from China.
They are considering extending a truce on China’s export curbs on rare earths at the summit, but Chinese customs data shows Beijing is still throttling shipments of the materials vital for defence and manufacturing.
The summit talks may also encompass the Iran war, as China, which maintains ties with Iran, is a major buyer of its oil.
Trump said on Tuesday, however, he did not think he would need China’s help to end the conflict, even as hopes for a lasting peace deal dwindled and Tehran tightened its grip over the Strait of Hormuz.
Neither side has strong incentives to make early concessions, however, said Kim, the academic, adding that the United States is unlikely to ease curbs on key technologies such as semiconductors.
China, in turn, buoyed by relatively resilient growth and trade performance, is under less pressure to offer significant compromises, he said.
Bureaucratic preparations for the launch of direct trade between Türkiye and Armenia as part of the ongoing normalization process between the two countries have been completed, the Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday.
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Öncü Keçeli said the preparations were finalized as of May 11 under the confidence-building measures implemented since 2022.
“The bureaucratic preparations regarding the initiation of direct trade between our country and Armenia have been completed as of May 11, 2026,” Keçeli said in a statement released by the ministry.
He noted that technical and bureaucratic efforts aimed at opening the common border between the two countries are still continuing.
The new arrangement allows the final destination or point of departure for goods traveling from Türkiye to Armenia via a third country, or vice versa, using the same route, to be listed as “Armenia/Türkiye,” according to the statement.
Keçeli said Türkiye would continue contributing to the development of economic relations and broader regional cooperation for the benefit of all countries and peoples in the South Caucasus.
“In light of the historic opportunity seized to strengthen lasting peace and prosperity in the South Caucasus, Türkiye will continue to contribute to advancing economic relations and cooperation in the region,” he added.
Türkiye’s e-commerce market expanded sharply in 2025, with the transaction volume rising more than 52% year-over-year, Trade Minister Ömer Bolat said Tuesday.
“The e-commerce volume in our country increased by 52.2% last year to reach TL 4.57 trillion. This is a very significant figure,” Bolat said. “It corresponds to approximately $115.5 billion, representing nearly 29% growth in dollar terms.”
Bolat was speaking in Ankara at the unveiling of the E-Commerce Outlook Report, which showed total e-commerce transaction volume reached 5.94 billion last year.
Retail e-commerce alone grew 51.8% from a year earlier to TL 2.46 trillion, while the number of retail transactions totaled 1.94 billion.
The sector has expanded rapidly over the last six years. Türkiye’s e-commerce volume stood at $23.94 billion in 2019 and rose steadily to $89.58 billion in 2024, marking a 382% increase in dollar terms over the 2019-2025 period.
Bolat said e-commerce accounted for 6.9% of Türkiye’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2025, noting that it represented approximately 19.5% of total trade volume.
The minister also highlighted continued growth in e-exports, saying government support measures for both e-commerce and cross-border digital trade remained in place.
More than 11,500 individuals generated over $10,000 each in e-export revenues last year, while Türkiye earned $5.1 billion in foreign currency revenues from e-exports, he noted.
The number of businesses engaged in e-commerce also increased, rising to 634,611 in 2025 from 600,800 a year earlier.
According to the report, 75% of these businesses were sole proprietorships, 21% were limited liability companies and 4% were joint-stock companies.
Male entrepreneurs accounted for 72% of e-commerce business owners, while women represented 28%. The largest share of both male and female business owners fell within the 30-34 age group.
Sectoral data showed food delivery remained the largest segment by number of businesses, accounting for 20.3% of the e-commerce ecosystem, followed by apparel, footwear and accessories at 13.8%, electronics at 11.9%, and home, garden, furniture and decoration at 10.5%.
In terms of transaction value, apparel, footwear and accessories captured the largest share of e-commerce spending in 2025, totaling TL 428.7 billion.
That was followed by electronics with TL 304.34 billion, airlines with TL 285.44 billion and food services with TL 270.16 billion.
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