JM Innovations



National & World Ag News Headlines
Trump Defends Trade Policies to Farmers
USAgNet - 01/16/2019

President Donald Trump on Monday defended his tough trade policies in front of thousands of farmers who have suffered because of his trade war with China, disappointing some who had hoped to hear a plan for a swift resolution.

According to Reuters, Trump dedicated much of his speech to explaining why he believes the United States needs a wall on its southern border, in his second consecutive visit to the American Farm Bureau Federation's annual convention. He also said his trade policies would deliver long-term benefits for the American heartland.

U.S. farmers, numbering some 3.2 million, have been reliable Trump supporters, despite struggling financially since Beijing imposed a tariff on imports of U.S. soybeans in July in retaliation for Trump's tariffs on Chinese goods. China has also implemented duties on other U.S. farm goods, including pork and grain sorghum.

"I would like to have known that there was a fix that was going to be done immediately and that he could have told us about it today," Illinois grain farmer Robert Klemm said at the convention in New Orleans.

China bought about $12 billion worth of U.S. soy in 2017, but mostly shifted purchases to Brazil last year because of the trade dispute, reports Reuters.

"With China, every year for many years we're losing $375 billion. We're working on that very strong. You see what's going on. Doing very well," Trump said at the convention, without providing specific details on the negotiations.

"We're turning all of that around with fair trade deals that put American farmers, ranchers, and in fact America, first," he said.

Trump spoke as a partial government shutdown dragged into its 24th day. The shutdown has led to the closure of U.S. Department of Agriculture offices and delayed farmers' applications for federal loans and an aid package meant to ease the pain caused by the trade war.


Other National Headlines
Sturdy-Built Mfg.
E-Z Trail Farm Wagons
Copyright © 2024 - Farms.com. All Rights Reserved.