Articles by Bill Tomson

China has begun making policy changes and will soon be accepting applications for tariff exemptions as part of its agreements under the phase one trade pact with the U.S., the Trump administration announced Tuesday.

The U.S. has lifted its ban on Brazilian beef after shutting out the product more than two years ago because of repeated sanitary and health violations, according to USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service.

President Donald Trump announced Friday via Twitter that he is open to doling out billions of dollars in a third trade assistance package for farmers because of implementation delays in trade deals such as the "phase one" pact with China.

China will follow through with the billions of dollars in additional ag purchases that it promised to make as part of the “phase one” trade pact with the U.S., but the coronavirus outbreak may delay the sales, Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue told reporters Thursday.

President Donald Trump says he wants a trade agreement with India, but suggested Tuesday that a partial pact will come first, followed by a more comprehensive deal later this year or after the election.

The Trump administration continues to argue that it can use the threat of auto tariffs as a tool in negotiating trade agreements, but House Democrats are demanding that the Commerce Department report that supposedly justifies the threat be released publicly.

Several shipments of U.S. chicken on their way to China are being diverted to South Korea and Hong Kong because of the disruption at Chinese ports as the country tries to contain the spread of the coronavirus, Agri-Pulse has learned.

A proposed U.S.-Kenya pact is expected to create new markets for U.S. farm commodities and equipment and promises to pave the way for new trade standards across sub-Saharan Africa.

The Trump administration has laid out a lengthy list of its complaints and demands for changes in the World Trade Organization’s appellate body five months ahead of the WTO’s twelfth ministerial meeting that will be held in Kazakhstan.

China’s Finance Ministry announced Thursday that on Feb. 14 it will cut tariff rates on $75 billion worth of U.S. products, including some ag commodities such as soybeans, chicken, pork, oranges and asparagus, but the impact is expected to be minimal.