Tariffs
Tariffs, also known as taxes on imported goods, are a tool used by President Donald Trump as part of his overall economic vision. As U.S. agriculture navigates tariffs and their implications on trade, commodity prices, input costs and more, ag economists and farmers remain divided on the effectiveness of tariffs and what the changes mean for the broader economy and livelihoods.
Jim McCormick, AgMarket.Net, says the markets saw risk off selling in response to President Trump’s Liberation Day tariff announcement. He says the markets may not stabilize until after the tariffs go into effect April 9 and trading partners tip their hand on retaliation.
Tomm Pfitzenmaier, Summit Commodity Brokerage, says grains saw risk off selling and positioning ahead of President Trump’s Liberation Day announcement on tariffs. However, Mexico’s president says they don’t want a tit for tat trade war.
On Wednesday afternoon, President Trump announced a series of tariffs, scheduled to start over the next few days, on some of agriculture’s most significant trade partners. Some corn and soybean growers say they are bracing themselves for potentially more financial pain ahead.
In a Wednesday morning press conference, ahead of Trump announcing his global tariff plan, Sheinbaum says Mexico will “announce a comprehensive program, not a tit for tat on tariffs,” but added, “we have a plan to strengthen the economy under any circumstance.”
The parent company of Case IH, New Holland, Steyr and other machinery brands says there will be no impacts to production and parts shipments will continue as planned.
The downturn in the ag economy has everyone from farmers and ag lenders to even ag economists concerned. Waning optimism is an overriding theme for the row crop side of agriculture, yet some farmers hope President Donald Trump’s tough stance on trade can get the ag economy back on track longer-term.
Kent Beadle, Paradigm Futures expects high volatility at the end of the month and recommends farmers get some sort of risk management strategy in place to at least put a flood under grain prices.
Continued good demand into 2025/26 is likely as any positive tariff results wouldn’t end in one year — potentially sustaining the corn bull market.
Canadian farmers are on edge as the latest trade war could impact the crops they grow as well as the inputs they need to plant a crop this spring.
With tariffs and trade in focus again, a recent AgWeb poll asked farmers if they support President Donald Trump’s use of tariffs as a negotiating strategy.