Soybean counters: scope of China-US farm deal depends on math, analysts say
China granted five-year export licenses to 77 US beef facilities, while renewing expired licenses of 425 other plants for another five years
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on Friday that he expects to see China buy a 10-figure sum in agricultural products annually over the next three years, including soybeans and other unspecified items, but most of this estimate appears to be based on earlier soybean purchase agreements.
Meanwhile, Chinese analysts said any new purchases of products aside from soybeans would be incremental, as Beijing was reluctant to accept purchase demands that exceed its actual needs or hinder its goal of building up its domestic supply.
“Beijing will not accept purchase demands exceeding its actual needs or driven purely by political motives,” said Lin Shen, a researcher with the Institute of World Economics and Politics at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
In 2024, before Trump’s second term and his renewal of the bilateral trade war, China imported about 27 million tonnes of American soybeans worth about US$12.6 billion, according to the USDA.