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U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping shake hands before beginning their first summit in six years at Gimhae International Airport in Busan on October 30. / Source: Xinhua News

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping held a long-awaited summit on October 30 at Gimhae International Airport’s Naraemaru Protocol Hall in Busan — their first in six years — producing a string of concrete agreements after 1 hour and 40 minutes of talks that observers say exceeded expectations.

According to diplomatic sources from Seoul and Beijing, the two leaders agreed to lower tariffs between the two nations from the current 57% to 47%, a 10-percentage-point reduction. They also reached an understanding to lift China’s export controls on rare earth materials “as soon as possible,” ensuring that the planned suspension of exports to the United States on December 1 will no longer proceed.

In another key step, Beijing will immediately resume imports of U.S. soybeans, which had been halted since June, and Washington agreed to halve the tariff on fentanyl — a synthetic opioid often dubbed the “zombie drug” — from 20% to 10%.

However, the two sides did not clarify whether they had agreed to extend the temporary suspension of “super-high tariffs,” which expires in mid-November. Sources suggested some friction remained over that issue, describing the outcome as a “small deal.”

Despite this, both leaders are expected to meet again soon. Trump plans to visit China next April, followed by Xi’s potential reciprocal trip to either Palm Beach, Florida, or Washington, D.C. Analysts say the summit signals that the long-running U.S.-China tariff and trade war has passed a major turning point.