By Chris Hogg
BBC News, Shanghai
**US and Chinese officials are due to meet in the eastern city of Hangzhou in the 20th meeting of the US-China Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade.**The trade talks come just a couple of weeks before the US President Barack Obama makes his first visit to China.
The Americans say these talks are an important opportunity to engage China at a very senior level on specific trade issues.
The US and China are engaged in several trade disputes.
US Commerce Secretary Gary Locke is leading the American delegation.
tyre dispute
The Chinese side is represented by vice premier Wang Qishan.
Mr Locke signalled that energy co-operation was likely to be an important topic around the table.
US firms are seeking access to the potentially lucrative Chinese market for clean energy and alternative fuels.
China and the US are involved in a number of different trade disputes, but of course the politicians are seeking to play down their differences ahead of the meeting.
Asked about a recent US decision to impose tariffs on cheap tyres Mr Locke insisted that some of the cases that appear in the newspaper headlines represent only a small fraction of Chinese exports to the US.