Chinese President Xi Jinping assumed a central role at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit 2025 in South Korea on Friday, following a fragile trade truce reached with US President Donald Trump. With Trump skipping the main two-day summit, Xi became the focal point of high-level diplomacy and multilateral engagement among the 21-member economic bloc.

The summit, hosted in the historic town of Gyeongju, comes at a critical moment for global supply chains and trade stability. Xi’s presence signals China's intent to shape the regional economic agenda, especially after agreeing with Trump to suspend further curbs on rare earth exports. This move had threatened to disrupt global manufacturing.

The China-US trade truce, secured just before Trump's early departure from South Korea, aims to de-escalate mounting tensions over critical materials. The deal delays restrictions on China’s export of rare earths, easing immediate fears of supply chain disruptions for high-tech and defense industries.

Xi emphasized the importance of multilateral cooperation in a closed-door session on Friday.

"Changes unseen in a century are accelerating across the world," Xi told the gathering, according to China’s Foreign Ministry, adding: "The rougher the seas, the more we must pull together." US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent represented Washington in Trump’s absence.

Xi set for talks with Japan’s new leader

Attention now turns to Xi’s upcoming meeting with Japan’s newly elected Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, her first diplomatic encounter with China since taking office. The meeting is expected to take place on Friday, according to sources familiar with the matter.

While relations between Beijing and Tokyo have improved in recent years, Takaichi’s hawkish foreign policy stance and push to strengthen Japan’s military posture may test diplomatic ties. One of her first moves as prime minister was to accelerate defense spending to counter 'China’s influence' in East Asia, and Japan continues to host the largest concentration of US troops abroad.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is scheduled to meet with Xi at 4 pm local time, aiming to reboot bilateral engagement after a prolonged period of strained relations. Canada, currently locked in a trade dispute with its primary partner, the United States, is working to reduce its economic dependence and tap into new markets. That said, China remains Canada’s second-largest trading partner.

Thai PM to discuss regional stability with Xi

Thai Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul is also scheduled to meet with Xi on Friday, following a ceasefire agreement signed with Cambodia earlier in the week under US mediation. The talks are expected to focus on regional stability and strengthening economic cooperation.

Although Trump has frequently cast himself as a global peace broker, Xi used their Thursday meeting to emphasize China’s significant role in fostering dialogue and advancing reconciliation on key international issues.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, this year’s summit host, called for cooperation despite political differences. "It is clear we cannot always be on the same side, but we must work together to achieve common prosperity," Lee said in his opening remarks.

South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun noted that negotiations on a joint statement were ongoing but expressed optimism that both a ministerial and leaders' declaration could be finalized before the summit concludes on Saturday. “We are very close,” Cho told reporters.

Meanwhile, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is scheduled to speak on Friday afternoon at a business gathering running parallel to the summit. The chipmaker recently became the first company to surpass a $5 trillion valuation. However, the issue of US restrictions on Nvidia’s AI chip sales in China was reportedly not raised during the Xi-Trump meeting.

The APEC region, stretching from Russia to Chile, accounts for 50% of global trade and 61% of global GDP, underlining the significance of this year’s summit and the central role played by Xi Jinping.