China threatens that U.S. agriculture won’t recover from the tit-for-tat trade war between the two countries. In the South China Morning Post, a government official warned that U.S. agriculture may never regain lost market share stemming from the trade war. China alleges that “many countries have the willingness” and capacity to take over market share occupied by U.S. goods. Since the trade war began, China has imposed duties on 90 percent of agricultural goods from the United States. China charges that addition tariffs will cause “a great decrease” in exports from the U.S. with “limited impact” on China due to diversified import sources.
China’s vice agriculture minister also claimed that Chinese companies had “basically stopped” importing soybeans from U.S. farmers and would deal with the impact by finding alternative ingredients for animal feeds. China is the world’s biggest importer of soybeans, which it uses to make cooking oil, biodiesel and livestock feed.
However, China on Monday accepted the 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans, as a vessel waiting to dock for five weeks reached port and began unloading. The move marks the first shipment of U.S. soybeans to be accepted with a 25 percent tariff stemming from the U.S.-China trade war. China’s state grain stockpiling company accepted the shipment, even as government officials warned over the weekend China would source products, such as soybeans, elsewhere.
The company will pay the tariff on the 70,000 metric ton shipment, with the tax estimated at $6 million, according to Reuters. The Chinese company claims the ship was delayed by port congestion, though the port has not seen any major backlogs for more than a month. U.S. soybean exports to China in 2017 were worth $12.7 billion, but the trade war between the two nations has sparked concerns over how much U.S. soy China will purchase. Two other ships carrying U.S. soybean have been anchored along China’s coast for a few weeks now, and many expect China to start sourcing more soybeans from Brazil.
Source: NAFB News Service