President Trump will get a tour of the Forbidden City Wednesday afternoon and then have a family dinner with Xi Jinping and Peng Liyuan. It is not clear if Jared Kushner will attend the family dinner. First Lady Melania Trump is apparently scheduled to return to the US from Beijing on Friday afternoon, after some additional sightseeing Friday.

North Korea will be at the top of the agenda. Trump just said in South Korea that “President Xi has been very helpful. You’ll find out how helpful soon.” It would make sense that Xi may try to take some initiative, to get out front of the US. There is no question that the Trump administration pressure has moved Beijing further than any previous US administration, so for that Trump deserves credit.

Expect lots of yuge, happy trade deal announcements but do not fully fall for the hype as many will just be MOUs. It will be a waste of US leverage if no structural changes are agreed upon. Xi, as powerful as he is coming out of the 19th Party Congress, …