Soybean farmers hold hope China will buy
Salisbury, Md. – After President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in October, farmers and agriculture industry insiders were optimistic that trade between the two countries would resume.
Steve Hurley is a second-generation soybean farmer in Wicomico County, and after trade negotiations opened with China to buy more soybeans, he felt cautiously optimistic.
“After they announced that China would be buying some soybeans, we’ve seen about a 10% increase in the price,” he said. Though it is an improvement from when China did not buy any soybeans, Hurley said it wasn’t enough.
“Really to be comfortable, we need about a 50% increase at this point because of the high input cost,” he said.
Before the tariffs on China, it purchased about 25 million metric tons of soybeans in a full year.
“But in retaliation, because of the tariffs, from the federal government, they stopped all purchases of soybeans, and it had a distinct, impact on, cash prices for soybeans and futures prices for soybeans” Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Agriculture Steven Connelly said.
Last month, the Supreme Court heard arguments on whether Trump has overstepped his authority in imposing broad tariffs. In the meantime, talks with China opened the way for normal trade between the two countries. However, doubts remain that it can return to normal in time.
“They promised to purchase a 12 million metric tons of soybeans by the end of this calendar year,” Connelly said. “They’ve started some, some purchases, but we’re, you know, we’re starting to run out on a December.”
However, hope remains that China will buy more soybeans.
“They also promised for the next three years to go back to buying 25 million metric tons of soybeans,” Connelly said. “I’m hopeful that that will happen.”
Hurley said that he is also optimistic that soybean sales will increase, despite the effects from Trump’s tariffs on China.
“Most of us do have hope,” Hurley said. “We feel that what [Trump] did with the tariffs was a necessary thing, and we knew it would hurt. But we’re looking at the long term outcome.”
