US farmers struggle to replace China market despite Donald Trump’s trade wins
- Bump from deals like new trade pact with Japan can’t make up for lost exports in bruising tariff war
- US farmers spent decades cultivating customers in China, and the market dwarfs others with its sheer size and potential for growth
This story is published in a content partnership with POLITICO. It was originally reported by Ryan McCrimmon on politico.com on September 30, 2019.
Farm exports in fiscal 2019 are down nearly 7 per cent from 2018, exacerbating one of the toughest periods for agriculture since the 1980s farm crisis.
Sales to China alone in fiscal 2019 are down US$7.7 billion. In contrast, the Japan agreement might boost farm exports by less than US$3 billion, based on independent analysis of similar deals.
Trump’s agriculture and trade officials say the trade war is providing an opportunity to wean farmers off their dependence on trade with China, and they are racing to cut more deals, especially in regions with large or fast-growing populations like Southeast Asia.
But farmers are losing patience as their crops continue to pile up in storage, potentially jeopardising Trump’s support among a group that was key to his election in 2016.
