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China has agreed to ramp up commercialized for U.S. cultivation products specified arsenic beef and poultry, buying astatine an annualised complaint of $17 cardinal per twelvemonth for 2026 and astatine that level for 2027 and 2028, the White House announced connected Sunday (May 17, 2026).
The announcement came 2 days aft President Donald Trump returned from a high-stakes acme successful Beijing wherever helium sought to easiness the interaction connected American farmers from the commercialized warfare helium launched past year.
China would reconstruct marketplace entree for U.S. beef and resume imports of poultry from U.S. states determined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to beryllium escaped of the vertebrate flu, the White House said. The deals are connected apical of China's soybean acquisition commitments past year.
The agreements connection immoderate anticipation to American farmers harmed by the commercialized warfare arsenic they saw a large export marketplace for soybeans and different products adust up.
Farmers besides are feeling caller unit from Trump medication policies — the warfare that the US and Israel launched against Iran has curtailed shipping done the Strait of Hormuz, a captious commercialized corridor that has restricted planetary fertiliser supplies and sent those prices soaring.
There was nary contiguous confirmation of the presumption from Beijing.
China's Ministry of Commerce connected Saturday (May 16, 2026) said the 2 sides would “resolve oregon marque important advancement toward resolving definite non-tariff barriers and marketplace entree issues" regarding cultivation goods.
The U.S. would “actively work” to code China's concerns regarding detention of its dairy products, seafood, the export of potted bonsai, and the designation of Shandong state arsenic a bird-flu-free zone, portion the Chinese broadside volition “likewise actively work” to code US concerns regarding the registration of beef processing facilities and the export of poultry nutrient from definite states to China, a ministry spokesperson said.
The 2 sides besides agreed to grow trade, including that of workplace goods, done measures specified arsenic reciprocal tariff reductions connected “a circumstantial scope of products,” though the spokesperson did not specify the products.
China, recognising the nexus betwixt nutrient information and nationalist security, has diversified its sources of imported soybeans, beef and different workplace goods, turning progressively to Brazil, Argentina and different countries implicit the US.
China sharply chopped backmost US imports during the commercialized war
Data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture amusement China's imports of U.S. cultivation goods peaked successful 2022 with $38 cardinal but fell to $8 cardinal successful 2025. These figures see astir $18 cardinal successful soybean purchases successful 2022 and $3 cardinal successful 2025.
It's not instantly wide however overmuch much China would bargain from American soybean farmers, who were deed particularly hard successful the commercialized war. China, traditionally the largest overseas purchaser of American soybeans, stopped purchasing them altogether past twelvemonth aft Trump hiked tariffs connected Chinese goods.
The latest statement builds connected a commercialized truce Trump reached with Chinese President Xi Jinping successful October successful which China agreed to resume buying U.S. soybeans.
The White House said past that China committed to buying 12 cardinal metric tonnes successful the existent selling twelvemonth and 25 cardinal metric tons for each of the adjacent 3 years.
According to the White House, hundreds of US beef plants, including those tally by Tyson and Cargill, besides volition beryllium capable to export again to China, though it's not instantly wide however overmuch beef American businesses volition beryllium selling to China.
China fto licenses for hundreds of U.S. beef plants expire past year, and the import worth for 2025 fell to little than $500 million, according to USDA figures. China's purchases of U.S. beef had peaked astatine $2.14 cardinal successful 2022, the authorities information shows.
The US export of poultry meats and products to China was $286 cardinal successful 2025, down from much than $1 cardinal successful 2022.
Trump and Xi utilized acme to find areas of economical cooperation
During the acme past week, Mr. Trump and Mr. Xi discussed ways to heighten economical cooperation, including expanding marketplace entree for American businesses successful China and expanding Chinese concern into U.S. industries, the White House had said.
The 2 leaders agreed to acceptable up abstracted boards of commercialized and concern — though offered fewer details connected the proposals oregon however they would disagree from existing commercialized dialogues.
The Board of Trade volition let the 2 governments to negociate commercialized of “non-sensitive goods,” and the Board of Investments would supply a venue for the 2 sides to sermon investment-related issues, according to the White House.
China's Ministry of Commerce said the 2 bodies would code respective concerns regarding commercialized and investment.
The Board of Trade, the ministry spokesperson said, would let the 2 sides to sermon issues specified arsenic tariff reductions connected circumstantial products. “In principle, the 2 sides agreed to trim tariff connected products of respective interest astatine equivalent scale,” the spokesperson said.
Xi said past week that China's doorway of accidental volition unfastened wider erstwhile helium met with US concern leaders joining Trump connected the trip. Among those who travelled to Beijing was Brian Sikes, CEO of the cultivation elephantine Cargill.
Soybeans, which are utilized for livestock provender and biofuels successful China, are among the apical US cultivation exports. Soybean exports to China successful the past had accounted for astir fractional of U.S. exports of cultivation goods to the Asian nation.
USDA information shows the U.S. exported 10.9 cardinal metric tonnes of soybeans to China arsenic of May 7, putting China connected way to fulfil its erstwhile committedness by the extremity of the selling twelvemonth connected August 31. This is good beneath the 25 cardinal to 30 cardinal metric tonnes that China purchased successful past years.
Before Trump's archetypal planned travel to Beijing successful precocious March — which was postponed by the Iran warfare — the American Soybean Association urged him to prioritise soybeans successful the commercialized talks with Xi.
Scott Metzger, president of the association, said Thursday the radical would similar to spot “additional soybean purchases this selling year, arsenic good arsenic continued advancement toward fulfilling aboriginal acquisition commitments.”
“Greater certainty and consistency successful the marketplace assistance supply farmers with the assurance they request arsenic they marque decisions for the twelvemonth ahead,” helium said.
