[Text/Observer Network Liu Bai] As time goes by, will China still buy American soybeans this season? American soybean farmers are eagerly looking forward to it, while the hearts of American politicians are getting colder and colder...
The US "Capitol Hill" disclosed on September 30th that after holding a closed-door briefing with US Ambassador to China Pound Dewei that day, Republican lawmakers admitted that China may not buy American agricultural products in the short term. On the same day, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rawlings admitted that the agricultural economy is currently in poor condition, and the federal government is racing against time to work. It is expected that an agricultural rescue plan will be announced soon.
According to the report, as a result of the trade conflict provoked by US President Trump, China, the world's largest soybean buyer, still has zero orders for US soybeans this season.
"We realize that China deliberately does not buy (American) agricultural products. We don't expect them to change this. This is part of the long-term problem." Sen. Mike Lowndes, R-South Dakota, said after the briefing.
Mr. Lanz added that Mr. Pondwei did not mention a timetable for a trade deal with China, nor did he discuss potential solutions to the challenges facing farmers.
Republican Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota
Pondwei declined to comment on the specifics he communicated to Republican lawmakers.
"President Trump has made reaching a trade agreement a public top priority." He said, saying that the US has been in contact with high-level Chinese officials recently. "I know they are actively pushing forward. You always have to have hope."
Senator John Hoven, a Republican of North Dakota, claimed that China "uses American farmers as bargaining chips" and "we must ensure that our farmers are not out. Measures should be taken to prevent China from taking advantage of our weaknesses."
U.S. farmers may have been called Trump’s big box office in last year’s election, but are now suffering from the economic pain caused by the trade conflict.This has made Republican lawmakers in major agricultural states frustrated by Trump’s trade policy, and they are increasingly concerned about the prospects for next year’s midterm elections.
Just as U.S. soybeans were unsalable to China, the Milei government of Argentina, which is regarded as an ally of Trump, expanded its soybean exports to China through tax cuts. In particular, the Trump administration also planned to rescue the Argentine financial market, which made a bunch of American politicians angry.
On the 26th, Reuters quoted traders as saying that during the suspension of agricultural export taxes in Argentina, a total of 40 shipments of soybeans from November to December were registered and exported, most of which were sold to China.
At this time, it was the peak season for U.S. soybean exports, and Chinese buyers snapped up Argentine soybeans, which dealt a heavy blow to U.S. exports.
Iowa Republican Senator Chuck Glasley bombed Argentina’s move to sell soybeans to China, saying the move pushed the previously dominant U.S. soy farmers out of the market.
He posted on social media that farmers should be the "top consideration" in negotiations and that U.S. negotiators should seek agreements on their behalf.
"Why did the United States bail out Argentina while they took away the largest market for American soybean producers?" Grassley wrote in another post.
He said the U.S. should “use encryption to help the wounded agricultural economy at every level.”
It’s worth noting that during the United Nations General Assembly in New York last week, a scene was captured: U.S. Treasury Secretary Besson received a private text message with complaints about Argentina’s reduction in export taxes.
"As a reminder, I'm still gathering more information, but the situation is very unfortunate." A text message supposedly sent by U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins reads. "Yesterday we bailed out Argentina, and as a result, Argentina canceled the export tax on grain and sold it to China at a lower price, which should have been our sales window. Because of this, the price of soybeans in the United States continues to fall, and this will give China more leverage over us!"
To soothe market sentiment, Trump said last week that the federal government would use funds raised from tariffs to help troubled U.S. farmers.
In an interview with Fox News on the 30th, Rawlings admitted that the U.S. agricultural economy is currently "in poor condition" due to the loss of markets from trading partners such as China.
"Right now, the agricultural economy is not good. We are working against time," Rollins said. "The president has promised to support our farmers, and we will make an announcement soon, probably next week."
On September 29, Senate Majority Leader John Thun, a Republican senator in South Dakota, interviewed NBC’s Meeting the Media show with concerns that farmers are facing partial market shutdowns as they prepare for the “great harvest” of corn and soybeans, causing agricultural products to be “nothing to sell.”
“In the end, our farmers may need some financial aid this year, and much of the revenue from the tariffs will be used to provide that aid,” he added.
Exclusive texts of this section are not reproduced without authorization.