Principal crops planted in the United States declined from 319.3 million acres in 2018 to 302.6 million acres in 2019, a decline of 16.7 million acres. Assuming that we return to a more normal prevent plant year, planted acreage will likely be around 320 million acres in 2020. The crops planted on the additional 17 […]
Bloomberg writer Peggy Collins reported late last week that, “China’s leader Xi Jinping reassured U.S. President Donald Trump in a phone call that Beijing would meet purchase goals outlined in the recent trade deal between the countries — despite the impact of the coronavirus on the Asian nation, White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow said Friday. “‘Xi apparently said, may be a little […]
Wall Street Journal writer Lingling Wei reported on Thursday that, “China said it would slash tariffs on $75 billion of U.S. imports in half as part of its efforts to implement a recently signed trade agreement with Washington. “Beginning Feb. 14, China will cut tariffs on some U.S. goods to 5% from 10%, while levies on some other items will be reduced […]
At the direction of President Donald J. Trump, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue today announced the third and final tranche of 2019 Market Facilitation Program (MFP) payments aimed at assisting farmers suffering from damage due to unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations. The payments will begin to show up in farmers’ bank accounts by […]
The U.S. beef cattle herd is known to cycle through periods of expansion and contraction roughly every 10 years or so. The high feed price era from 2007 to 2013 contributed to one of those contraction phases with beef cow numbers reaching a low in 2014. Of course, low supplies translate into higher prices, motivating […]
U.S., China Ag Trade- Recent Background Reuters writers Hallie Gu, Muyu Xu and Tony Munroe reported last week that, “China’s imports of U.S. soybeans surged in December from a year earlier, data showed on Friday, as China ramped up purchases during a thaw in the two country’s trade war. “China brought in 3.09 million tonnes of […]
New York Times writers Ana Swanson and Emily Cochrane reported on Wednesday that, “President Trump signed the revised North American Free Trade Agreement into law on Wednesday, fulfilling a key campaign promise and bringing more than two years of tumultuous negotiations over the continent’s trade rules to a close. “The trade deal, now called the United […]
Before the ink dried on the newly signed Phase 1 trade agreement, dozens of articles and Twitter threads emerged with clever insights into the nuances and subtleties of the agreement. Most debates focused on the base level China agree to buy up from, and the relevant commodities and products. Stepping back from the details, this […]
Background A recent Congressional Research Service report explained that, “U.S. agricultural exports have been a major contributor to farm income, especially since 2005. As a result, the financial success of the U.S. agricultural sector is strongly linked to international demand for U.S. products.” A recently signed trade-enhancement agreement that will lower agricultural tariffs in Japan, Senate passage of the USMCA agreement, along with […]
Bloomberg writers Mike Dorning and Michael Hirtzer reported last week that, “President Donald Trump’s phase-one trade deal with China offers the promise of more overseas sales for American farmers, but the impact of the agreement remains unclear. “Trump has promoted a commitment by China to purchase $40 billion to $50 billion annually in farm products for the next two years. That compares with $24 billion in agricultural and […]