China
U.S. years away from large supply of African swine fever vaccine
Researchers have identified a promising candidate for an African swine fever vaccine but the United States remains two to five years away from having a large supply, said Agriculture Undersecretary Greg Ibach. Speakers at the USDA's annual Ag Outlook Forum said China, hit by an ASF epidemic, would struggle to rebuild hog herds in the near term.
To meet goals, China will be ‘ramping up’ U.S. ag purchases, says Perdue
Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said he believes China will meet the goals of the "phase one" trade agreement, although the USDA's new estimate of sales — $14 billion this fiscal year — is only one-third of the target. "We believe those numbers will be surpassed," Perdue said Thursday at the USDA's annual Ag Outlook Forum.
Give trade agreements time to work, says FCA chief
The chairman of the Farm Credit Administration appealed for Farm Belt patience on Trump trade agreements on Wednesday. "The groundwork has been laid for trade normalization and improved farm prices," said Glen Smith during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing.
Soy mania among U.S. farmers a risk, even if China makes large purchases
Limited initial impact on U.S. ag exports from China deal
Coronavirus will delay sales boom to China, says Kudlow
Trump speech to include next steps on China
In his State of the Union speech on Tuesday, President Trump will provide details on further steps in U.S.-China trade relations, says a senior administration official. The nations signed a "phase one" agreement to de-escalate the trade war on Jan. 15 and Trump indicated "phase two" negotiations would begin soon, although no date has been announced.
Will total U.S. ag exports rise if China buys more?
Without a doubt, the best outcome from the "phase one" agreement with China "is the possibility of U.S. exports to China returning to pre-trade war levels," says economist Dave Widmar. But it's not clear how larger sales to China would affect overall U.S. ag exports, which are forecast at $139 billion this year and have varied from a low of roughly $130 billion to a record-high $152 billion over the past several years.
Trade war impact on ag exports was greater than it appears, say economists
An analysis by five economists says the Sino-U.S. trade war cut far deeper into U.S. farm exports to China than it appears in a simple tallying of sales before and after the tariffs were announced.
Ag purchases from U.S. will hinge on Chinese demand, says vice premier
The “phase one” trade agreement with China assures sales of “up to $50 billion in agriculture alone,” said President Trump at a White House signing ceremony on Wednesday, although Chinese Vice Premier Liu He said sales would depend on domestic demand and U.S. prices. A senior administration official said later that the pact did not require China to remove retaliatory tariffs on U.S. farm goods — a potential barrier to exports.
Grassley says he will blow the whistle if Chinese backslide on trade deal
‘Phase one’ with China is ‘pretty much all for the farmers,’ says Trump
With China confirming that it will sign a “phase one” trade agreement next week, President Trump said on Thursday that the pact, which will include China buying up to $50 billion a year in U.S. farm exports, “is pretty much all for the farmers.” At the same time, the outlook darkened for final congressional approval of the USMCA next week.
Grassley has good words for ‘Tariff Man’
U.S. and China to ease, but not end, trade war next week
President Trump says he and Chinese officials will sign a "phase one" trade agreement at the White House on Jan. 15 that will de-escalate the Sino-U.S. tariff war that began in earnest in mid-2018. The agreement obligates China to buy up to $50 billion a year in U.S. farm exports, more than four times the sales level forecast for this year, according to U.S. officials, but details have not been released.
Brazil says Trump changed his mind on steel and aluminum tariffs
Three weeks after he slammed Brazil and Argentina for actions "not good for our farmers," President Trump reversed his decision to impose high tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from the South American nations, said Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro on social media over the weekend. "The relationship between the United States and Brazil has never been Stronger!" tweeted Trump on the same day.
China may agree to buy U.S. ag exports, but a final tranche of cash to farmers is still likely
On the same day that China and the United States tentatively reached a “phase one” agreement on a trade deal, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said that he expects producers will still receive the final $3.6 billion in trade war payments President Trump authorized last spring.
Painful ag restructuring if Sino-U.S. trade war persists
If there is no near-term resolution of the Sino-U.S. trade war, the Trump administration will need to spend billions of dollars in additional trade war payments to farmers and ranchers or watch farm income sink, said two economists on Monday. Either way, there would be painful restructuring in the sector, which has collected more than $10 billion in Trump tariff payments this year.
Kudlow says ‘no arbitrary deadlines,’ but a Sino-U.S. trigger date is near
China said it would waive import tariffs on some shipments of U.S. soybeans and pork in a goodwill gesture hours before White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said the two nations were close to an interim agreement on the trade war. "No arbitrary deadlines," said Kudlow, but the Trump administration has set Dec. 15 as the date for higher duties on $160 billion of consumer goods made in China.
Mexico to displace China as top corn importer
China will remain the leading importer of soybeans and cotton, but Mexico will be the world's largest corn importer for the rest of this decade, said the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute. The United States would be the top corn exporter despite increased competition from Brazil, said the University of Missouri think tank in updating its international marketing baseline.