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US President Donald Trump has welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping at the White House on the second day of a high-stakes visit.

The Chinese leader arrived in Washington DC on Wednesday in his first trip to the United States since 2023, with trade tensions and artificial intelligence set to dominate the agenda.

The trip got off to an auspicious start as US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced a two-month extension to the trade truce between the two superpowers late on Wednesday.

At the White House, Trump and Xi struck a conciliatory tone, emphasising the need for greater communication and co-operation between the two countries that have world's largest economies.

Xi invited 100,000 US citizens to study in China and the country is set to continue its panda diplomacy by sending two pandas to a US zoo as a signal of friendship.

Trump announced "decisions" would be made on key issues such as "security, technology, and super intelligence," the US president's preferred new term for artificial intelligence and a crucial arena of competition between the two countries.

"The decisions we make in these areas today can promote peace and prosperity for decades and decades to come," Trump said.

According to a written address released by China's official news agency Xinhua, Xi stated that the US and China should be partners not rivals.

He said it was a crucial year for relations between the two countries, adding that they should foster stable relations characterised by co-operation, moderate competition, surmountable differences and the prospect of peace.