Bessent: U.S. responded to soybean farmers’ concerns about China

U.S. Soybean Exports to China Discussed in Malaysia

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent mentioned on Sunday that discussions about U.S. soybean exports to China occurred during talks between the two nations in Malaysia.

“I think we managed to address some of the worries farmers had,” Bessent stated during an interview with Martha Raddatz regarding a meeting with China’s International Trade Representative Li Chenggang and Vice Premier He Lifeng.

Many U.S. soybean farmers are feeling the repercussions of the tariff conflict initiated by President Trump with China. Generally, the U.S. leads as the top supplier of soybeans to China, but recent reports indicated that China purchased over 1 million tons of soybeans from Argentina last month after Argentina lifted a 26% export tax on its soybeans.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) noted that U.S. farmers exported $12.64 billion in soybeans to China last year, considerably more than the European Union, the second-largest trading partner, which was over $10 billion behind.

In the past decade, soybean exports to China peaked at $17.92 billion in 2022.

“I think our soybean farmers should be quite pleased with how this season and the next few are shaping up,” Bessent said.

Earlier this month, President Trump indicated on his Truth Social platform that he intends to allocate “a portion” of the tariff revenue to support soybean farmers impacted by the trade tensions. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins recently announced that the Department of Agriculture would reopen all 2,100 Farm Service Bureau offices.

These offices, which provide disaster relief and loans to farmers and ranchers, had been closed due to the government shutdown.

President Trump is set to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea on Thursday, wrapping up a five-day tour of Asia that commenced in Malaysia.

Bessent also shared with ABC News that negotiators from both nations have established “a substantive framework” concerning the proposed 100% U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports, which were announced earlier this month in response to stricter regulations in China regarding the acquisition and production of rare earth minerals.