US President Donald Trump is arriving in Asia for a whirlwind week of diplomacy, which includes a much-anticipated meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.

Top of the agenda between the two will be trade – an area where tensions between the world's two biggest economies have once again been ramping up.

Trump lands in the Malaysian capital, Kuala Lumpur, as a summit for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or Asean, begins on Sunday. He will then visit Japan and finally South Korea, where the White House says he will meet Xi.

So what are the wins Trump and other leaders are hoping for, and what are the pitfalls? Our correspondents explain what you should know about the week ahead.

For Trump, China is the key

By Anthony Zurcher, North America correspondent

Inking new trade deals that provide opportunities to American businesses while keeping the tariff revenue flowing into the US Treasury is sure to be a central focus of Trump's Asia trip.

While there are multiple players in the global trade dance, the key to Trump's success or failure is China. And Trump's scheduled meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of Apec – the first since 2019 – could set the course for US-China relations for the rest of Trump's second term in office.

As the US president has acknowledged, draconian tariffs on Chinese imports are unsustainable. And while he has not explicitly said so, an escalating economic war with America's largest trading partner would have devastating consequences – for the US, for China and for the rest of the world.

The steep tumbles in the major US stock indexes every time China and the US appear at an impasse underlines this reality.

When he heads back to America next week, Trump is sure to be pleased if he is able to finalise a deal with South Korea and secure new Japanese investment in US manufacturing.

But his top priority is sure to be convincing Xi to resume purchases of American agricultural exports, loosen recent restrictions on foreign access to Chinese rare earth materials, give US companies greater access to the Chinese market and avoid a full-blown trade war.

For Trump, as the saying goes, that's the whole ballgame.

Xi's long game

By Laura Bicker, China correspondent

When Chinese leader Xi Jinping meets Trump on 30 October in South Korea, he wants to be the tougher negotiator.

That is why he has been leveraging China's stranglehold on rare earths, the minerals without which you cannot make semiconductors, weapons systems, cars or even smartphones. It's a US weakness, and China is exploiting it – just like it is hurting American farmers, and Trump's rural vote base, by not buying their soybeans.

Xi has also learned lessons from Trump 1.0 and this time, Beijing, it appears, is willing to embrace the pain of tariffs. For one, the US, which once took in a fifth of Chinese exports, is no longer such a crucial market.

A starring role in 'peace'

By Jonathan Head, South East Asia correspondent

The US president appears interested in one thing only during his visit to Malaysia: playing the starring role in a ceremony arranged specially for him, at which Thailand and Cambodia will sign some kind of peace accord.

Neither can afford to disappoint President Trump. Back in July, when they were still bombing and shelling each other, his threat to end tariff talks forced them into an immediate ceasefire.

Other Asean member states will hope for Trump's mere presence, brief though it is, to normalise relations with the US.

They have had a tumultuous year in which their export-dependent economies were badly shaken by his tariff war. Exports from the region to the US have doubled since Trump's last visit to the Asean summit in 2017.

An early test for Japan's new PM

By Shaimaa Khalil, Japan correspondent

Trump has described Japan's new prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, as a woman with great strength and wisdom. This week, her ability to forge a stable, working relationship with him will be an early test of her leadership - and of Japan's place in a shifting world order.

Both sides also want to finalise a tariff deal negotiated by her predecessor, particularly beneficial to Japan's auto giants - Toyota, Honda and Nissan - it cuts US import duties on Japanese cars from 27.5% to 15%, potentially making them more competitive against Chinese rivals.

Trump is also expected to press Tokyo to contribute more to US troop deployments.

Talking tariffs as Kim Jong Un looms

By Jake Kwon, Seoul correspondent

For South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, the pressing issue is Trump's tariffs.

But that thunder was briefly stolen by rampant speculation that Trump might visit the border to see North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

Analysts believe Kim is hoping to legitimise his nuclear weapons programme with another summit with the US president. However, talks to lower US duties on South Korean exports have stalled.

Lee has a trade deal to negotiate while hoping for progress on negotiations amidst the regional uncertainty.