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Trump, Xi Join Virtual Asia Pacific Summit as Trade Spat Endures

Reuters

   KUALA LUMPUR - A virtual summit of Asia Pacific leaders started Friday
   with U.S. President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping
   in attendance to discuss the coronavirus crisis and global economic
   recovery amid lingering trade differences.

   The pair joined a meeting of the leaders of the 21-nation Asia-Pacific
   Economic Cooperation (APEC) hosted virtually by Malaysia just two weeks
   after Trump lost his reelection bid.

   Asia Pacific leaders have called for more open and multilateral trade
   to support the economic recovery and warned against protectionist trade
   policies, with Xi saying unilateralism has added to global economic
   risks.

   At the last APEC summit in 2018, member countries failed to agree on a
   joint communique for the first time in the bloc's history as the United
   States and China disagreed on trade and investments.

   Trump has slapped tariffs on billions of dollars worth of Chinese
   products, which launched a trade war between the world's two largest
   economies.

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