The US and Chinese finance ministers are opening talks to lay the groundwork for a Biden-Xi meeting

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and her Chinese counterpart will meet in San Francisco on Thursday for two days of talks aimed at making progress on a slew of economic issues at a time when competition has markedly intensified between the two countries. Yellen's talks with Vice Premier He Lifeng are designed to help lay the groundwork for an expected meeting between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping next week on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in San Francisco, which would be their first engagement in nearly a year.