Trump to meet Xi in four weeks, vows relief for US farmers amid tariff war
With US soybean sales to China at zero due to retaliatory tariffs, American farmers urge Trump to prioritise their plight as he heads into high-stakes trade talks.
President Donald Trump signalled on Wednesday (October 1) that he intends to press Chinese President Xi Jinping on increasing US soybean purchases during their meeting, as American farmers continue to bear the brunt of his trade disputes.
"The Soybean Farmers of our Country are being hurt because China is, for 'negotiating' reasons only, not buying," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "I'll be meeting with President Xi, of China, in four weeks, and Soybeans will be a major topic of discussion," he added.
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Trump announced last month that he would meet Xi on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea at the end of October, and also plans to visit China next year.
Talks after tariff war
The talks follow a bruising tariff war between Washington and Beijing earlier this year, during which both sides imposed escalating duties on each other’s goods. Although the two countries have since agreed to ease tensions, the truce remains fragile, with lasting repercussions.
Trump on Wednesday reiterated plans to use some US tariff revenues to aid farmers, while taking aim at his predecessor Joe Biden for not enforcing an earlier trade pact with Beijing that involved a step up in farm purchases.
Soybean farmers bear brunt
Trump's aggressive trade policies and resulting fallout have weighed on US farmers, including hitting export markets like China. As per an AFP report, the American Soybean Association (ASA) has urged Trump to prioritise soybeans in trade talks with Beijing.
It warned in August that Beijing's retaliatory tariffs are "shutting American farmers out of their largest export market going into the 2025 soybean harvest."
China is a top global buyer of soybeans, with the United States once being a major source for the world's second biggest economy.
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But "the US has made zero sales to China in this new crop marketing year due to 20-percent retaliatory tariffs imposed by China in response to US tariffs," ASA president Caleb Ragland said last week.
"This has allowed other exporters, Brazil and now Argentina, to capture our market at the direct expense of US farmers," he added in a statement. "The frustration is overwhelming," he said.