The ongoing U.S.-China trade discussions and decisions are important to Matt Splitter, but the central Kansas farmer says they can be a challenge to stay current on day-to-day.
“You know, I can’t keep up. Everything’s kind of flipping and flopping all day, every day,” says Splitter, who farms near Lorraine.
At the end of the day, Splitter, like a lot of farmers, says he wants to see the two countries stop sparring over trade and find mutual opportunity.
“I’m a very optimistic guy, so anything that we can do to resolve trade issues, for sure, would be great,” he told Chip Flory, host of the AgriTalk Farmer Forum, on Wednesday.
A 90-Day Roll Back On Tariffs
The United States and China agreed on Monday to drastically roll back tariffs on each other’s goods for an initial 90-day period. Specifically, the U.S. will temporarily lower its overall tariffs on Chinese goods from 145% to 30%, while China will cut its levies on American imports from 125% to 10%, according to a joint statement by the two countries.
In the process, they also acknowledged, “the importance of a sustainable, long-term, and mutually beneficial economic and trade relationship.”
Tim Burrack, who farms in northeast Iowa near Arlington, says he’s concerned by the continued trade turmoil and how it’s impacting farmers and U.S. agriculture at large.
“If Trump can pull this off with China, and they’re back in the market, I will be a Trump supporter wholeheartedly,” Burrack says. “But right now, China and Brazil are getting together. They’re going to build infrastructure, and they’re going to make SAF and they’re going to build railroads, and it’s not good for us and our future. That’s why we need new markets.”
China To Build World’s ‘Biggest Export Terminal’
China’s state firms are already major investors in South America’s energy, infrastructure and space industries, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Monday that COFCO, a Chinese state-owned food processing holding company, plans to build the world’s biggest export terminal in Brazil to substitute U.S. soybeans and other foodstuffs. The Council on Foreign Relations adds that China has surpassed the United States and is now South America’s largest trading partner.
“[South America] is excited, you know. China’s just coming to them, and they’re coming to China,” Burrack says. “[These trade agreements] are going to be a tough nut to crack for the future.”
A High Level Of Financial Anxiety
Splitter told Flory he’s “pretty negative currently” on the state of the U.S. agriculture economy. “We don’t have good prices. Crop insurance guarantees are down. I mean, it could be devastating,” Splitter says.
That refrain is one Flory says he’s hearing repeated by farmers across the country.
“I think there’s a high level of financial anxiety out there among the younger producers, and it may not just be the younger producers,” Flory says. “I’m hearing it almost every day now, from producers from Ohio to Missouri to Kansas. I’m hearing it across a wide range, and I think it’s real.”
Splitter says he thinks about his marketability, in terms of whether he might want to take an off-farm job. “Every day you’re back on the farm, and you’re your own boss, you become a really bad employee for somebody else,” he says, only half joking.
“There’s nothing else I’d rather do [than farm], but when a single entity, let’s say the government, is causing this much pain and anxiety in your life, I mean, that’s not right,” Splitter adds.
Flory looked to Burrack, a longtime Iowa grain farmer, to provide some perspective for Splitter.
“I understand everything he said, it’s for the love of farming,” Burrack says. “We love it so much, sometimes we’ll do it for nothing. Once you survive the ‘80s, if you survived the ‘80s, you can survive this. And you know, I’ve never been a fan of creating this much turmoil, but maybe Trump’s plan will come to fruition.”
Trade Discussions Are To Continue
Looking ahead, the U.S. and China have agreed to establish “a mechanism to continue discussions about economic and trade relations,” led by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, according to the joint statement the countries released.
No timeline has been set for additional trade talks, as of Wednesday afternoon.
“These discussions may be conducted alternately in China and the United States, or a third country upon agreement of the Parties. As required, the two sides may conduct working-level consultations on relevant economic and trade issues,” the countries’ joint statement added.
Hear Burrack and Splitter weigh in with additional thoughts regarding trade on the latest AgriTalk Farmer Forum. They discuss their planting progress, tech issues that have held up the process, and share some thoughts on the Iowa State Senate vote against a CO2 pipeline via eminent domain.
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