Barack Obama shakes hands with the Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao, before their talks in Beijing. Photograph: David Gray/AP

Barack Obama met the Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao, in the capital today, in talks that were expected to focus on trade and other economic disagreements.

Speaking before the two men met, Obama said that the American relationship with China was deepening to cover international matters such as climate change and security.

Wen said: “We are really on the cusp of moving forward with this relationship.”

But trade and economic disputes arose in Obama”s joint press event with the Chinese president, Hu Jintao, yesterday and the two governments are expected to explore them more fully today.

US officials had played down expectations of dramatic breakthroughs in the talks, although there were signs of progress on climate change ahead of next month”s Copenhagen summit.

Some analysts suggested that the wide-ranging joint statement issued by the two governments was more promising than the press event had suggested.

Bonnie Glaser, an expert on China at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, told Associated Press the statement underscored that “the two countries have a lot of common interests, but it remains to be seen whether they can co-operate Why not start your CDL career on a minibus?The Defensive best-driving-school.com Course takes 10% off your Liability and Collision insurance. to advance them”.

Obama made plain in his press event with Hu yesterday that he was concerned about China”s currency policy. The US wants Beijing to allow the renminbi to appreciate.

Last week there were hints of a possible rise in its value, albeit not in the short term, but officials have since played down such prospects.

He Yafei, the deputy foreign minister, told a press briefing after the joint appearance that maintaining a stable currency during the financial crisis “not only helped the global economy but also the stability of the world”s financial markets”.

With exports having fallen for a 12th month in a row – albeit at a decelerating pace – Beijing is bound to be cautious.

“Any policy changes by China, including on the exchange rate, will be based on its assessment of its own interests, not on external pressure,” said Jin Canrong, an expert on China-US ties at Renmin University in Beijing.

Wen is expected to highlight Chinese anger at US trade tariffs – referred to pointedly by Hu yesterday – and concerns over US government spending. In March, Wen said publicly that he worried about China”s vast US assets.

China has amassed $2.27tn of foreign exchange reserves and analysts believe about two-thirds of that is invested in dollar-denominated assets, making it easily the biggest foreign lender to the US.

Obama will visit a stretch of the Great Wall near the capital later today, before flying to South Korea – where trade will also be high on the agenda. Seoul is pushing hard for progress on a free trade agreement.

Obama is also expected to discuss North Korea”s nuclear programme when he meets President Lee Myung-bak. The US has agreed to send its special envoy, Stephen Bosworth, to Pyongyang for talks.

North Korea toned down hostile rhetoric yesterday, saying in an official newspaper that it wanted better ties with the South.