Hello, this is Leonie Kidd writing to you from London. Welcome to today’s edition of the Daily Open newsletter.
This morning, the CNBC newsroom found itself brushing up on its Greek history as the “Thucydides Trap” made it mainstream. The term refers to how tensions between rising and ruling powers can often result in war — and Chinese President Xi Jinping is suggesting China and the U.S. avoid it as he concludes the first day of talks with President Donald Trump.
What you need to know today
“We should be partners, not rivals,” said Chinese President Xi Jinping as he greeted U.S. President Donald Trump in Beijing on Thursday morning.
“It’s going to be better than ever before,” said Trump of the U.S. and China’s relationship in his opening remarks.
It’s a positive start to the most highly anticipated meeting of the year, with tricky topics, including trade, tariffs, Iran and Taiwan all on the table.
Speaking just ahead of Trump, Xi noted the global attention on the meeting, and said a major question for the two countries was whether they could avoid the “Thucydides Trap,” according to an official English translation of his Chinese remarks broadcast by CCTV.
The Thucydides Trap refers to how tensions between a rising and a ruling power often lead to war. Graham Allison, the Harvard professor who popularized the concept, told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Asia” that he expects the trade truce Trump and Xi reached at their meeting in South Korea last fall will become a formal agreement.
So far, the trip has included an airport welcome by a military band and hundreds of young people waving flags, a longer-than-expected bilateral meeting in the Great Hall of the People, and a visit to the Temple of Heaven.
In the U.K., Prime Minister Keir Starmer faces another tough day, with speculation running high that his Health Secretary Wes Streeting will resign to launch his own leadership bid for the Labour Party. It would add to a volatile week for the British gilt market, with yields topping multi-decade highs.
European stocks look set to open higher amid a mixed trading picture across Asia-Pacific equities. Meanwhile, oil prices are moving higher on Thursday as the International Energy Agency flagged greater impending volatility, while OPEC lowered its demand outlook for the year.
In corporate news, Cisco shares spiked 17% in after-hours trading on Wednesday after the tech group issued guidance that surpassed Wall Street’s forecasts on surging AI orders. Meanwhile, AI chip maker Cerebras has priced its IPO above the expected range, reeling in $5.55 billion.
— Leonie Kidd, Evelyn Cheng
