The United States hopes that China will further expand its procurement of agricultural products. However, China has clearly stated that implementing the reciprocal tax reduction arrangement reached by both sides is a prerequisite.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce responded to the issue of expanding imports of American agricultural products on that day, emphasizing that China has always been open-minded on this matter. However, both parties must first implement the previously reached “30 billion for 30 billion” reciprocal tariff reduction arrangement. Reuters reported on November 5th that this indicates that tariff concessions remain an important condition for China to promote bilateral agricultural trade cooperation.
At the regular press conference of the Ministry of Commerce that day, a reporter from the American consumer news and business channel (CNBC) asked questions. On November 2, Li Chenggang, the representative for international trade negotiations and deputy minister of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, met with a U.S. agricultural trade delegation. What agreements were reached between the two sides regarding the expansion of imports of U.S. agricultural products? Were the discussions mainly related to soybeans or other agricultural products?
Regarding this, Huang Ling, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce, stated that Sino-US agricultural trade is an important part of bilateral economic and trade cooperation. Expanding cooperation in the field of agricultural trade can not only enrich the diets of people from both countries but also provide stable economic income for enterprises and farmers in both countries, bringing tangible benefits to both sides.
Huang Ling emphasized: 'China has always been open to expanding its purchases of agricultural products from the US, but this is subject to the implementation of the '30 billion to 30 billion' reciprocal tax reduction arrangement between the two sides.'
She also stated that she hopes the US and China will work together to create more favorable conditions for agricultural trade between the two countries by reducing tariffs, eliminating non-tariff barriers, and expanding market access.
This statement also reaffirms that expanding trade in agricultural products between China and the United States requires joint efforts by both sides to create favorable conditions, and does not simply require China to increase purchases.
According to information released by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce earlier this year, during the eighth round of economic and trade consultations between China and the United States from September 20 to 23 this year, both sides held meetings in New York and Washington. They reached consensus on the working procedures of the China-U.S Trade Council and the '300 billion for 300 billion' framework for reciprocal tax reduction.
According to the relevant arrangements, both parties will grant tariff concessions for approximately $30 billion worth of each other’s imported goods. More than 90% of these products will be exempt from all additional tariffs imposed on each other, and they will enjoy the most favorable tariff treatment under the most favored nation clause.
Among them, the US side intends to reduce tariffs on about $30 billion of imported goods from China, such as toys, household appliances, baby products, and kitchenware. The Chinese side intends to reduce tariffs on about $30 billion of imported goods from the US, such as agricultural products, personal care products, medical devices, and coal.
However, the related tax reduction measures still need to be implemented simultaneously after both parties complete their respective domestic legal procedures.
In this context, Reuters noted that there is still a gap between the agricultural procurement targets announced by the U.S. government and the actual trade situation.
In May of this year, the White House announced that China agreed to purchase US agricultural products worth $17 billion per year starting from 2026, and that the procurement targets for this year would be adjusted proportionally according to the relevant arrangements. This procurement arrangement does not include the previous procurement commitments that both parties had regarding US soybeans.
Reports say that China is progressing with its purchase of US soybeans as planned, but the situation regarding the import of other agricultural products is different.
From January to September this year, China's imports of non-soybean agricultural products from the United States, including meat and corn, totaled approximately $7.2 billion, which is the lowest level since 2019.
The report also stated that the White House has not yet specified whether the aforementioned $17 billion annual procurement arrangement should be calculated from the time it was announced in May this year, or whether it will only be initiated after the two parties formally implement the tax reduction arrangements. Therefore, there is still uncertainty regarding the procurement timeline.
Meanwhile, American farmers are facing pressures such as rising fuel costs. According to traders cited by Reuters, large-scale procurement of American agricultural products would be commercially unfeasible without lower tariff levels.
This also means that to promote further entry of American agricultural products into the Chinese market, in addition to the willingness of both parties to cooperate, competitive prices and a stable, predictable trading environment are also required.
According to the consensus reached between China and the US earlier, both countries have decided to establish an agricultural working group under the framework of the China-US Trade Council. This working group will discuss issues related to regulation and market access, address concerns in agricultural trade, and promote practical cooperation. The first meeting of the working group is scheduled to take place by the end of this year.
The Chinese Ministry of Commerce has previously stated that China will continue to promote through the working group mechanism the resolution of the US side's concerns in the agricultural sector.
For the United States, which hopes to further expand its exports of agricultural products to China, whether it can implement the agreed tax reduction consensus and reduce trade barriers remains an important issue that needs to be addressed next.
