There was an air of mirth around the breakfast bar at Beijing’s St Regis Hotel on Tuesday morning as members of the Australian delegation checked the local papers for news of the prime ministerial visit.

The evening before, Anthony Albanese had held a bilateral meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. However, not only was a picture of that handshake emblazoned on the front page of the state-run China Daily newspaper, but it was accompanied by three others, also from the day before.