The Trump administration has provided $8 billion in aid to date to the agriculture industry to offset the negative impact the various tariffs it has imposed since President Trump took office, according to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue.
“Farmers contended with significant market disruptions in 2018 arising from retaliatory tariffs that were affecting billions of dollars of agricultural trade and disrupting markets for commodities ranging from soybeans to almonds to hogs,” Perdue will say Wednesday, according to prepared comments the agency posted online for Perdue’s appearance before the Senate Agriculture Committee. “To date, [assistance] programs have provided more than $8 billion to assist with the disruption in commodity markets caused by unfair tariffs on U.S. agricultural products.”
The administration has imposed tariffs on steel and aluminum imports and on $250 billion worth of Chinese goods. China retaliated by placing 25 percent tariffs on $34 billion worth of U.S. goods including soybeans, pork, and chicken, among other items. President Trump is also considering additional tariffs on auto imports, a move that could provoke further retaliation, particularly from the European Union. Trump has said that the tariffs are linked to whether the U.S. and the EU can come to new trade deal.
Perdue said in the prepared remarks that domestic farms need a “rebalancing [of] our trading relationships with key agricultural trading partners, and we can start with Mexico and Canada.” He called on Congress to approve Trump’s United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement on trade.
“We also hope for rapid progress in negotiating agreements with Japan, the EU, and the UK, resolution of China negotiations, and potential new agreements with other Asian markets that will expand opportunities for agriculture,” he said.
On Friday, Perdue announced that China will purchase 10 billion tons of U.S. soybeans. The announcement comes as the White House is a trying to reach a broader trade deal with Beijing by next month. China had cut back on its purchases of U.S. agriculture goods last year as part of the trade war.
