Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has declared the successful meeting between United States President Donald Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping was "very welcome" as brushed aside concerns a trade deal could lessen investment in Australia's critical minerals sector.

The closely watched meeting was hailed as a decisive win by President Trump on Thursday, who said he would move to reduce tariffs on China and that Beijing had agreed to allow exports of critical minerals in addition to purchasing American soybeans.

"I guess on the scale from 0 to 10, with ten being the best, I would say the meeting was a 12," the US President told reporters on Air Force One.

Chinese officials gave a more subdued account of the talks, with President XI saying both nations would continue to work on fi

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