The Chinese president called on the two sides to work together to build a new type of relations between major countries in an innovative and active way to serve the fundamental interests of the two peoples and to promote development and progress of human society.

Xi said that he was looking forward to having extensive and in-depth exchanges with Obama on major strategic issues of common concern, so as to strengthen mutual understanding and promote comprehensive cooperation between the two countries.

"I believe with joint efforts of both sides, the summit will achieve important and positive results, and inject new vigor into the future development of China-US relations," Xi said.

Obama, for his part, welcomed Xi's visit and said the US-China relationship is important not only for the prosperity and security of the two countries, but also for the Asia Pacific region and the whole world.

"Our decision to meet so early, I think, signifies the importance of the US-China relationship," the US president said.

He said that the unusual setting in which the US side is hosting Xi also reflects the importance they attach to the bilateral relationship.

The summit meeting provides an opportunity for both sides to have a more extended conversation, to share their visions for their respective countries and to discuss the construction of a new model of cooperation between countries based on mutual interest and mutual respect, he said.

Obama said his country welcomes the continuing peaceful rise of China as a world power and in fact it is in the interest of the United States that China continues on the path of success.

"We believe that a peaceful, stable and prosperous China is not only good for Chinese but also good for the world and for the United States," he said.

Both the Chinese and the US people want a strong and cooperative relationship, Obama said, adding that he is willing to work together with Xi to meet the global challenges.

"I'm very much looking forward to this (Xi's visit) being a strong foundation for the kind of new model of cooperation that we can establish for years to come," he said.

Following the meeting, Xi and Obama had a working dinner. They will meet again on Saturday morning.

The summit is the first face-to-face meeting between the presidents of China and the United States since the two countries completed their latest leadership transitions.

Xi arrived in the US state of California on Thursday, after wrapping up a three-nation Latin America tour, which took him to Trinidad and Tobago, Costa Rica and Mexico.