Trump and Xi seek TikTok win to break US-China gridlock

US president Donald Trump repeatedly put off a ban under a law designed to force Chinese parent company ByteDance to sell its US operations for national security reasons. (AFP)
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  • The telephone talks come as the world’s two biggest economies seek to find a compromise on tariffs

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke by phone on Friday, Chinese state media reported, as they seek an agreement to help keep the video app TikTok online in the US and ease tensions between two superpowers locked in a standoff over trade.

The report from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV did not provide any details of the conversation.

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The agreement is at the top of the agenda alongside trade for the leaders’ first known call in three months.

Trump and Xi’s effort to steady relations comes as the two governments have been discussing a potential in-person summit between Xi and Trump during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea on October 30-November 1, Reuters has reported.