Latest News From China

In October 2023, Arkansas became the first state to ban foreign-owned farmland. More states look to adopt similar laws, but one policy expert says the issue is rooted in politics and warns of unintended consequences.

From the election to world trade, as well as geopolitical factors that have the potential to shape agriculture in 2024, the December Ag Economists' Monthly Monitor shows the possibility of several economic surprises.

China's GDP growth could possibly drop lower than the U.S. this year. In fact, fewer and fewer sectors are healthy, and only then by direct government intervention.

Roughly 37.6 million acres of U.S. ag land is foreign owned, according to USDA. However, select purchases of U.S. land could come to an end following a Senate vote this week.

The July Ag Economists' Monthly Monitor showed several key changes from June including a bigger cut to corn and soybean yields, a drop in corn and soybean prices and more bullish cattle and hog prices.

The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) introduced an act to prevent foreign adversaries from exploiting U.S. land near security sites, and would push a review of current ownership in these areas.

This slump, deeper than May's 7.5% drop, represents the largest decline since February 2020.

Beijing on Monday announced export controls on gallium and germanium. Now the Biden administration is set to restrict Chinese companies’ access to U.S. cloud-computing services that use AI chips.

China's exports to Russia reached a record high in April, amounting to $9.6 billion.

The Office of Investment Security proposed a rule on Friday that would require foreign entities to garner U.S. government approval before they are able to purchase land within 100 miles of eight military bases.

The Missouri Senate on Wednesday backed a plan to amend the state's foreign land ownership threshold. The bill also includes a provision that would limit foreign countries from acquiring farmland in Missouri by Sept. 1.

Former President Donald Trump placed tariffs on more than $300 billion in Chinese goods during his presidency, raising costs for American companies, according to the ITC.

"In this current situation, the traditional approach to free trade agreements — which isn't just tariff cuts, but that they do tariff cuts on a fully comprehensive basis — isn't what we need right now,” Tai says.

After easing China’s COVID restrictions and a wave of COVID moved through its residents, Chinese consumers are quickly returning with an excess of cash in hand, the U.S. Meat Export Federation reports.

If the nation’s debt hits $31.4 trillion—it’s on track to do so by this Thurs.—the Treasury will need to take “extraordinary measures” to help pay the government's operations and ward off a historic default.

Export tariffs on aluminum and aluminum alloys will be raised. The current import tariff will stay on seven types of coal until March 31, with tariffs adopted for most favored nations from April 1.

Taiwan’s defense ministry said China sent 71 warplanes and seven naval vessels on “strike drills”⁠ — rehearsals for conflict ⁠— into its air-defense zones.

China moved to close parks, malls and museums on Tues. as COVID-19 cases hit near-record levels. Lockdowns follow reports that, days before COP27, Xi sent policy and business advisers to New York to meet U.S. executives.

“In the last 2,500 years, every Chinese government that has fallen, has fallen over food,” says Kuehl, Armada chief economist. “They need those import markets—be it from the U.S, Canada, Brazil or Australia."

Global inflation will likely decrease to 6.5% in 2023 and to 4.1% by 2024, according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast.

Have the Pacific Coast port bottleneck issues been resolved, or moved somewhere else? The East Coast may now be carrying the burden.

Do tariffs fuel inflation? John Phipps's Customer Support segment explains why economists have struggled to come up with estimates of economic effects due to lingering COVID influence on world business.

Fufeng Group recently bought 300 acres of land in North Dakota and the proximity to a U.S. military base has many concerned. But this isn’t the first time questions have been raised about China’s stake in the U.S.

The U.S.-China trade war began in July 2018 when the Trump administration imposed tariffs on $550 billion worth of Chinese goods. Nearly four years later, the debate remains as to which country actually won.

What happens to meat imports when the largest city in China is under lockdown? USMEF’s Joel Haggard explains.

With the U.S. on the back end of COVID-19 and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine unraveling, USTR Katherine Tai says her office is currently focused on three themes: resilience, sustainability and competition.

Rep. Garamendi says the USDA partnership with the Port of Oakland “isn’t going to solve the problem” because shippers deliver product to the U.S. and leave ports with empty containers.

On Monday the People’s Bank of China also announced a 0.1 percentage point cut to two of its key policy rates. It acted after GDP grew by more than 8% in 2021, but slowed down in the fourth quarter.

China has agreed to resume imports of Brazilian beef following more than three months of suspension due to two atypical cases of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE) were discovered in Brazil.

China's huge hog sector is struggling with excess production after millions of small, often first-time, pig farmers entered the industry to capitalise on record profits during a swine-fever related shortage.

China said on Saturday it pressed the United States to eliminate tariffs in talks between the countries' top trade officials that Washington saw as a test of bilateral engagement between the world's biggest economies.

Ongoing tensions between Australia and China have opened the door for increased shipments of beef and other commodities to China.

China imported 1.02 million metric tons of meat in March, customs data showed on Tuesday, the highest monthly volume since at least January 2020, as the world's biggest meat buyer stocked up to fill shortages at home.

In a unanimous Senate vote on Wednesday, Katharine Tai was confirmed as the next U.S. Trade Representative. The trade expert was confirmed with a vote of 98-0.  

Congress got a clearer view of President Biden’s trade agenda this week as the Senate Finance Committee questioned Katherine Tai, Biden's nominee to serve as the United States Trade Representative.

When it comes to meat export markets, particularly pork, 2020 was a year to remember. Here's why 2021 holds promise for both U.S. pork and beef export opportunities.

China has drawn up food safety standards on residue limits of growth hormones in beef, a move seen as a further step towards opening up its market.

Donkey hides are a key ingredient in a traditional Chinese medicine, and skyrocketing demand has decimated the world's donkey population while threatening the spread of diseases.

China will lift its 23-year ban on British beef, which comes as another Brexit deadline looms.

Cattle and beef markets have decreased from April highs with uncertainty in a variety of factors weighing on markets the past month. 

Rabo AgriFinance says the live cattle and feeder cattle markets are out of balance right now; a sign that lower feeder cattle prices could be on the horizon.

Rabo AgriFinance says the live cattle and feeder cattle markets are out of balance right now; a sign that lower feeder cattle prices could be on the horizon.

Japanese authorities are investigating an attempt to smuggle Wagyu semen and eggs from Japan to China.

Karan Beef doubled exports by gaining access to China. Now it’s targeting Malaysia.

China’s beef imports jump almost 80%, beating pork purchases. Beef imports this year are on course for a record amount

JBS S.A. announced expansion plans in Brazil to meet surging export demand from China.

JBS S.A. announced expansion plans in Brazil to meet surging export demand from China.

Total beef consumption in China in 2018 is estimated at 8.5 million metric tons, second only to the U.S., according to the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service.

China has an estimated total cattle herd of 96.85 million head in 2018, slightly larger than the current U.S. herd of 94.4 million head.

France has taken another step closer to starting beef exports to China’s huge market after Chinese officials last week inspected seven of the European country’s meat plants, a French industry official said.