China has agreed to buy 12 million metric tons of American soybeans by January and has dedicated to shopping for 25 million tons yearly for the subsequent three years as a part of a broader commerce settlement with the US, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated Thursday.
“So, the Chinese have agreed to buy 12 million metric tons of soybeans during this season right now,” Bessent instructed Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo. “What I would expect is as President Trump did in 2020 after President Xi had agreed to the phase one deal, he called him regularly and got him to buy more, and that number went up much higher,” he added.
China hadn’t bought any American soybeans since May, after President Donald Trump added hefty tariffs to a slew of Chinese items and Beijing imposed retaliatory tariffs, together with on US legumes.
Bessent went on to say that different Southeast Asian nations have agreed to purchase a further 19 million metric tons of US soybeans, although he didn’t specify a timeline for these purchases.
“We’ve also signed trade deals with countries in Southeast Asia, the rest of the world to buy our soybeans to the tune of another 19 million metric tons,” he stated, “So our great soybean farmers, who the Chinese used as political pawns, that’s off the table, and they should prosper in the years to come.”