The Global Story, The Global Story, When the two most powerful men in the world met

The Global Story

The Global Story

When the two most powerful men in the world met

31 October 2025

27 minutes

Available for over a year

On Thursday, Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping of China held a closed-door meeting in South Korea. The subjects of negotiation ran the gamut — from rare earth minerals, to fentanyl, to computer chips — and, according to President Trump’s subsequent news conference, the two parties reached a long-awaited deal. But exactly what did the world’s two most powerful men agree to?

The BBC’s China Correspondent, Laura Bicker, joins us to discuss.

Producers: Hannah Moore and Xandra Ellin

Executive Producer: Annie Brown

Senior News Editor: China Collins

Mix: Travis Evans

IMAGE: U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping as they hold a bilateral meeting at Gimhae International Airport, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, in Busan, South Korea, October 30, 2025. REUTERS/Evelyn Hockstein.