TikTok Discussions Advance as Xi and Trump Speak by Phone
By Guan Cong and Denise Jia
Chinese President Xi Jinping and U.S. President Donald Trump spoke by phone Friday about trade ties and the fate of TikTok, with both sides signaling progress toward a compromise on the embattled app.
Xi reiterated China’s position, saying Beijing supports corporate decisions made under market rules and Chinese law. He urged Washington to provide Chinese firms with an open, fair and non-discriminatory investment environment.
Trump, in turn, said the U.S. wanted to promote trade cooperation and would support negotiations between the two sides’ teams to find a balanced resolution.
He later wrote on social media Truth Social that he had a “very productive call” with Xi, claiming progress had been made on approving a TikTok deal. Trump said the two leaders agreed to meet at the APEC summit in South Korea and that he planned to visit China early next year, while Xi would visit the U.S. at a later date.
ByteDance Ltd., TikTok’s parent company, welcomed the remarks. “We thank President Xi and President Trump for their attention to TikTok,” the company said in a statement. “ByteDance will proceed in accordance with Chinese law to ensure TikTok U.S. continues to serve American users.”
The call came days after Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng led the fourth round of trade talks with U.S. officials in Spain, where negotiators reached a basic framework to resolve the TikTok dispute and reduce barriers to investment.
At a press briefing in Madrid, Chinese officials said both sides had agreed in principle to arrangements covering data security, content operations, and licensing of TikTok’s algorithms, while stressing that Beijing would approve any export of technology in line with its laws.
Caixin learned from people familiar with the talks that the plan centers on TikTok U.S. equity, licensing of its core algorithm, and safeguards for data. Details of the deal have not been disclosed.
TikTok’s crisis stems from a 2024 U.S. law requiring apps deemed under “foreign adversary control” to divest within 270 days — or face a nationwide ban. TikTok briefly shut down in January when the first deadline expired but resumed after Trump approved four extensions. The law effectively bars the company from having more than 20% Chinese ownership.
TikTok is a subsidiary of ByteDance, whose shareholders include founder Zhang Yiming, employees, and global investors such as General Atlantic, HongShan Capital Group, and Carlyle. Voting rights remain concentrated with Zhang and his management team.
China strictly controls the export of certain technologies, including personalized recommendation algorithms. Any transfer of TikTok’s algorithm or intellectual property would require approval under the country’s export control rules.
Contact reporter Denise Jia (huijuanjia@caixin.com)
caixinglobal.com is the English-language online news portal of Chinese financial and business news media group Caixin. Global Neighbours is authorized to reprint this article.
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