Trump, Xi and Putin to meet together for the first time on Nov. 19, with no nuclear treaty left

The White House confirmed on Friday that President Trump, China's Xi Jinping and Russia's Vladimir Putin plan to meet together on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Shenzhen, China, on Thursday, Nov. 19. Associated Press and ABC News both describe it as the first three-way meeting of the leaders of the three largest nuclear powers.

What officials say will be discussed

According to a senior U.S. official quoted by AP, Trump wants a three-way agreement on nuclear arsenals and plans to raise the U.S. war with Iran. The same official called the session the "beginning" of a conversation on nuclear disarmament and said no agreements are expected to be announced. ABC News, citing senior U.S. officials, reports that denuclearization is the main focus, that Trump will meet Xi first, and that there will be no separate Trump-Putin meeting.

Ukraine is not meant to be on the table. Both outlets report that Trump plans to steer away from it. AP adds that Ukrainian President Zelenskyy has worried the meeting could be used to discuss a Ukraine deal without Kyiv. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected comparisons to the Yalta Conference, saying any deals reached in Shenzhen could not be imposed on other countries.

The treaty gap behind the meeting

AP reports that New START, the last U.S.-Russia nuclear limits treaty, expired in February, leaving the two largest arsenals without caps for the first time in more than 50 years. Trump rejected a Russian request for a one-year extension and asked for a new deal that includes China. AP cites Pentagon estimates of more than 600 Chinese warheads against more than 5,000 each for the U.S. and Russia, and notes China has shown little interest in a pact. Analysts quoted by AP expect the meeting to be mostly symbolic.

What it means for oil, shipping and defense

Nothing in the officials' account changes supply today, so the market read is about tone. Traders have been pricing a standoff over the Strait of Hormuz and a US blockade (see our Nov. 12 report). A Trump-Xi lunch matters here because China is a large buyer of Gulf crude, but no official has said Iran supply will be part of any deal.

• Oil: December WTI settled Friday at $88.92, up from $86.85 at Monday's close. Front-month Brent ended at $96.08, up from $92.57 at the start of the five-session window (Yahoo Finance).
• Defense stocks: the iShares U.S. Aerospace & Defense ETF (ITA) closed at $71.51, 15.3% below its Aug. 14 peak.
• Airlines and airspace: the U.S. Global Jets ETF (JETS) closed at $28.84. The Cboe VIX closed at 19.3.
• Shipping, insurance and consumers: no change from this news alone. War-risk costs and pump prices still follow Hormuz traffic, not the summit.

The unusual part for markets is the guest list: the same week's backdrop includes the Russia diesel sanctions waiver we covered in our earlier report, and Moscow and Washington are already talking through envoys (Nov. 12). With a stated no-deal expectation, the risk is headlines, not outcomes. Watch Thursday's lunch with Xi and any statement on Iran.

Sources: AP via KSAT, ABC News, Yahoo Finance market data. Figures are Friday, Nov. 13 closes. This is market information, not investment advice.