Trump pitches China trade ‘win’ to US farmers ahead of Xi meeting, midterms
US President Donald Trump gestures to farmers from the Truman balcony of the White House in Washington on Friday.
Photo: AFP As US President Donald Trump heads to a delayed, high-stakes mid-May summit with President Xi Jinping in Beijing, he is already claiming victory, touting on Friday past trade talks with Xi as a win for American farmers, a crucial electoral bloc battered by his tariffs and the ongoing war with Iran. “Thanks to our trade deals, you’re now sending over US$40 billion in American soybeans to China,” Trump said on Friday, telling farmers and ranchers at the White House he personally secured the increase and urging them to “go out and buy bigger tractors”. “We had a deal at 20 and I said, ‘Could you do me a favour?
It’s a big place.
Could you double it?” And he said, ‘What are you talking about?’ I said, ‘Could you make it 40 instead of 20?’ And he overwrote all of his people.
He said, ‘All right, I’ll do it and you got 40 instead of 20.’” This figure has not been reported by the US Agriculture Department.
After Trump’s meeting with Xi in South Korea last October, he announced that Beijing had committed to purchasing 12 million tonnes of US soybeans by year-end and 25 million tonnes annually through 2028.
The agreement formed part of a temporary trade truce after China boycotted American soybeans for most of 2025 in response to hefty US tariffs on Chinese imports.
Recent data, however, points to a major shortfall in actual deliveries.
According to Chinese customs figures, China imported just 1.49 million tonnes of US soybeans in January and February, down more than 80 per cent from a year earlier.
Chinese data reflects only physical arrivals, meaning it does not capture shipments the US reports as sold but not yet delivered.
All reported purchases so far have been made by Chinese state-owned companies.
In contrast, soybean imports from Brazil surged 82 per cent year on year to 6.56 million tonnes, as private buyers sought to avoid US tariffs.
US Department of Agriculture data from last week showed that China had bought or shipped 10.8 million tonnes of US soybeans as of February, with a further 2.19 million tonnes sold to “unknown” destinations.
While Chinese state-owned enterprises often use this designation, it remains unclear whether those shipments are ultimately bound for China.
As both sides negotiate deliverables ahead of the leaders’ meeting, with agriculture a top US priority, tensions have resurfaced amid tit-for-tat
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