Image source, Getty Images

President Donald Trump said earlier that he and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have made "tremendous strides" on the issues facing the sides.

Beijing and Washington have so far agreed to extend their trade truce by two months while they work on a bigger deal.

Yet as it stands, companies face much the same uncertainty about the conditions their businesses will operate under in the months to come, investment strategist Charu Chanana from Saxo Markets said.

Businesses are looking for practical signals like "published tariff changes", rare earth shipments, agricultural purchases and changes to the rules around US chip exports.

"Those would matter more than the summit’s cordial optics," Chanana said.

"My read: this was a stability summit, not a breakthrough summit."

Image source, Bloomberg via Getty Images

President Trump presented Chinese leader Xi with a sculpture of a bald eagle.

The bird is the US' national symbol, embodying the "free and soaring spirit of America," Trump said during the state dinner.

The statue is part of a valuable - but sometimes tricky - aspect of international diplomacy: gift-giving, the BBC writes.

Read more here: Why Trump gave Xi an ornate bald eagle statue at the state dinner

Laura Bicker
China correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

For now, one of the summits biggest victories for Beijing may have been the optics.

The lavish welcome, a personal greeting at the airport and a state banquet featuring sesame crusted sea bass and braised baby bok choy have been welcomed by those watching from China. It will have helped cement Xi’s image at home as Trump’s equal.

Memes contrasting the two leaders have spread widely on Chinese social media. One popular image shows Trump grimacing as bomber jets fly overhead, while Xi remained impassive.

Xi has found a way to manage one of the world’s most unpredictable leaders. But while Trump talks of a "truly great friendship", China’s leader is focussed on something bigger: securing China’s place alongside the US as a superpower.

The pandas, the pageantry and the warm words may help smooth this relationship. But beneath the spectacle, the competition between the world’s two most powerful countries remains as fierce as ever.

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier in the day, Xi said China hopes the US will adhere to the "correct position" of "opposing Taiwan independence", Beijing's state news agency Xinhua reported.

The Chinese leader urged Washington to "handle the Taiwan question with prudence to lay a solid foundation for bilateral strategic cooperation and the development of China-US ties", Xinhua reported, adding that "China's position on safeguarding its national unity and territorial integrity is crystal clear".

Beijing claims self-governed Taiwan as part of its territory - though the island sees itself as distinct. Xi's government, in particular, has doubled down on its threats and sought ways to stamp out what it sees as separatism.

The US does not have formal relations with Taiwan, though it is bound by law to provide it with a means of self-defence. But it has frequently had to square this alliance with maintaining a diplomatic relationship with China.

Osmond Chia
Business reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Earlier on Thursday, Chinese President Xi stated that as the world's leading technology nations, the US and China share the responsibility for AI development.

He called on both sides to foster AI for the common good and ensure it stays under human supervision - echoing principles he has previously laid out for China’s domestic tech sector.

Views towards AI in China are "a lot more friendlier" than in the US, where sentiment is "more divergent", said analyst Lian Jye Su from tech research firm Omdia.

Beijing has made the technology a key pillar of its economic agenda and has advocated for the open sharing of AI models, driving adoption across the industry. The country also has a booming robotics sector.

Trump said earlier that AI will feature in his talks with Xi.

His government faces calls from experts and top tech figures stronger safeguards due to concerns about AI's risks. But Trump has largely dismissed these as a "hoax", arguing that the US cannot afford to lose its edge to China.

As for Beijing, there is "no chance" that China would agree to pace its AI development while they are behind, said Martin Chorzempa from the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

Reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico had earlier said they were denied entry to cover the White House state dinner despite a judge ruling their access to the grounds must be restored.

Trump had barred the three American media outlets from the White House since Saturday, accusing them of "fake news".

Journalists from the three outlets were allowed back on White House grounds Thursday morning after a federal judge said in an overnight ruling that the ban was likely unconstitutional and that the administration must allow them access. But the outlets said in evening that they were barred from covering the state dinner.

CNN reported that a press wrangler had barred their reporter and producer from entering the state dinner, telling them instead to "talk to" White House Communications Director Steven Cheung.

In response to a tweet by MS NOW producer Kyle Griffin on the development, the White House's Rapid Response account said the dinner was a "pre-credentialed event".

"Contrary to what the Fake News wants you to believe, they don’t just get to have free rein into every part of the White House, every event, and every press call," it said.

The BBC's China correspondent Laura Bicker analyses the successes - and failures - of the state visit.

Xi's visit to the US is, unsurprisingly, making headlines on Chinese state media this morning.

The People's Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, published a photo spread on its front page, of Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan being received at the White House with great fanfare.

Pages two and three included news related to the visit, including Melania Trump hosting Peng at the National Museum of Asian Art and commentaries on US-China ties. It also carried Xi's remarks at yesterday's welcome ceremony in full.

Global Times, an English language outlet under the People's Daily, ran opinion pieces calling for China and the US to be "partners, not rivals". Several of these pieces make mention of AI and how it "should be new avenue for expanding China-US cooperation".

The US and China's visions on AI differ sharply. While Beijing is in favour of closer global collaboration on AI safeguards, the US rejects the idea of international supervision.

Ione Wells
Reporting from Washington DC

Donald Trump’s remarks were laden with flattery. He called President Xi and his wife “outstanding”, spoke of a “long relationship” and invited him to be one of the first guests to step foot in the White House’s new ballroom.

“This is an honour,” he said.

You’d think from such fawning language that this was one of the US’s closest allies.

President Trump said they represented “different systems” but held back from anything resembling a critique.

President Xi praised the Trumps’ “gracious hospitality” but did hint at what he described as sincere and in-depth exchanges.

For all the talk of friendship, a long history of exchanging goods, and a new chapter, it’s very opaque how much progress - or not - has been made on the areas where these two countries are poles apart, particularly on foreign policy.

The next few months will be a real test. Does their trade truce hold beyond January? Does the US push ahead with arms sales to Taiwan? And will Xi return for December's G20 in Florida?

The state dinner is underway, and new images are emerging of guests mingling in the White House East Room.

Pictured are leading US technology executives and public figures gathered as Washington hosts Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, AFP via Getty Images

Image source, Reuters

After the world leaders have finished sipping their Schramsberg Blanc de Noir, Trump alluded to "entertainment" to come.

He also promised a ballroom tour to President Xi and his wife Peng Liyuan.

But beyond those festivities and the potential for mingling with major tech and business magnates, there is not much more in store for the night.

However, tomorrow the presidents wil have tea at the White House and pay a visit to the National Archives before Xi's departure.

Warm words from a Chinese leader who wants to keep relations 'stable'published at 01:52 BST

01:52 BST

Laura Bicker
China correspondent

Image source, Reuters

There are two words Xi is fond of using when it comes to China’s relationship with the United States.

Constructive and stable.

He’s used them again at a speech during the lavish state banquet, before the dinners of yellow squash velouté and sesame crusted sea bass.

"Let us join hands and move forward, side by side, together," he added.

These are warm words from the Chinese leader and a sign that he does want to keep this relationship stable.

The uncomfortable truth for Xi is that his domestic economy is in trouble and he needs to protect exports from debilitating tariffs.

He also needs the US market on side and to prevent his country’s rivalry with the US to spiral out of control.

Image source, Getty Images

In addition to Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, and their spouses, here's a look at who else is dining alongside the leaders tonight:

• Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and his wife, Lori Huang
• Apple's Tim Cook
• Tesla's Elon Musk
• AMD CEO Lisa Su and her husband Daniel Lin

When Trump visited Beijing in May, the leaders' table at the state dinner then was filled with government officials on the Chinese side.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, Reuters

The US and China's goals can be "mutually reinforcing" and the sides must act responsibly, Chinese President Xi Jinping told White House attendees towards the end of his speech.

"President Trump has pledged to make American great again," he said. The Chinese are also "committed to achieving great national rejuvenating and Chinese modernisation has kept breaking new ground", he added.

He urged the sides to explore a "new approach for major countries to get along".

The Chinese leader ended his speech with a toast to the health of Trump and the first lady, as well as the continued progress between the US and China.

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Image source, Reuters

Like Trump's, Xi's remarks were heavy on flattery, focusing on cultural ties and shared history between the US and China.

Xi said that he and Trump had "concrete" discussions that led to further understanding between the two countries, furthering what he has described as "strategic stability".

The friendship, he added, was "forged in blood and fire" during the fight against Japan in the Second World War, before being furthered during the "ping pong" diplomacy of the Nixon administration.

The remarks are significantly more historical in nature than Trump's.

None of the food has yet been served it seems. Wine glasses, however, are topped up.

Image source, Reuters

Chinese leader Xi Jinping is now addressing the White House state dinner attendees.

He says Trump and First Lady Melania Trump received he and his wife with "meticulous care and consideration", making them "feel truly at home".

He reflects on Trump's visit to China in May, saying the two are now "making history in our bilateral engagements".

"We agreed to build a constructive China-US relationship of strategic stability," Xi says.

He adds that today, the two shared "sincere and in-depth exchanges" that will strengthen relations between the two countries.

Image source, Reuters

At the end of his speech, Trump presented a sculpture of a bald eagle, America's national symbol, to Xi, saying it embodied "the free and soaring spirit of America".

The bald eagle is native to North America and serves as the official national bird of the US.

"We hope it will find a nice, wonderful place in Beijing. It's your honour," he said.

Trump added that he and First Lady Melania had participated in the design of the sculpture.

Image source, Reuters

A bit more now from Donald Trump's speech, where he thanked Xi Jinping for making the long trip to the US from China and saying "we've never gotten along better".

Like we just reported, Trump stuck mostly to his script, except for when he veered off, joking "I had to to do it".

In the off-the-cuff moment, he said as a "special treat" the Chinese leader and his wife could be the first to enter the ballroom, which is still a year away from completion.

"Anybody who wants to walk into a construction site that's nice and clean and sparkling, it's our honour to have you do so," he said.

Image source, Reuters

Bernd Debusmann Jr
Reporting from the White House

Image source, Reuters

I've just entered the East Room of the White House. Dozens of guests are gathered in the room, sat at round tables with red tablecloths. Trump stepped up to the mic moments ago.

I don't have a great view, stuck behind the tall ladders of photographers. Getting in was chaotic and abnormally physical. Secret Service officers at one point lost their patience with the Chinese media delegation, shouting at them to maintain order coming through the door.

As I came in, Elon Musk was standing at a nearby table and appeared to be telling an entertaining story that had his two neighbours barreled over with laughter.

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth was at a table, with a serious look on his face. His wife is sat beside him, with Jared Kushner and White House chief of protocol Monica Crowley nearby.

Trump's remarks are more of a dinner toast, praising the long history of US-China relations - although he did take an unscripted detour to praise his ongoing ballroom project.

He invited guests to take a look after tonight's entertainment "if you want to walk through a construction site".

As we just reported, there are some notable absences at tonight's state dinner. But there is a swathe of American executives, politicians and tech bosses now sitting around the White House dining room table to greet the Chinese delegation.

The CEOs of JP Morgan, Blackrock and Goldman Sachs are just a few of those attending from the finance world, while luxury goods company LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault and the CEO of Pfizer represent US business interests.

Meta's Mark Zuckerberg, Zoom's Eric Yuan and TikTok's Jeff Yass make up just a small portion of the tech cohort.

Also on the list, Fox News hosts Bret Baier and Laura Ingraham, while Paramount Skydance's CEO David Ellison is also in attendance.

Image source, Reuters