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China has already fulfilled more than half of this year's commitment to purchase 25 million tonnes of American soybeans, with the milestone coming ahead of an anticipated summit between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping in Washington. At the same time, progress on a separate agreement covering at least $17 billion in US agricultural products has largely stalled, according to a report by The Japan Times.
Both annual commitments remain in force through 2028. The soybean framework was agreed when Trump and Xi announced a trade truce last October, while the additional $17 billion agricultural deal was struck during the presidents' meeting in May, calculated on a pro rata basis for the current year.
US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told Fox that China is meeting its soybean pledge. He noted that Beijing has already purchased roughly $4 billion worth of products under the additional commitment, though he provided no further breakdown. It also remains unclear whether soybean purchases can be counted toward the $17 billion target.
Sales of the new US soybean crop rose sharply following the May meeting between Trump and Xi. By the end of last week, China had booked at least four additional cargoes of American soybeans. Kang Wei Cheang, a broker at StoneX Group, expects Beijing to deliver on its soybean commitment, citing the crop's importance to China's animal feed and edible oil production.
The picture is different for other crops. According to the US Department of Agriculture, sales of US corn and wheat to China for the 2026–2027 marketing year stand at zero. Imports of sorghum, used in feed and in the production of China's baijiu liquor, held steady this year, but demand has cooled recently.
China has a broader pool of alternative suppliers for other oilseeds, grains, and meat than it does for soybeans. Meeting the full $17 billion target would require Beijing to redirect purchases away from Canada, Argentina, Brazil, and Australia and toward the United States.
Both sides have discussed possible tariff reductions on goods including US energy products and agricultural commodities, which traders say could pave the way for larger American purchases. Trade, however, remains constrained by Chinese tariffs on US farm goods, softer demand inside China, sizeable domestic inventories, elevated agricultural commodity prices, and rising input costs for fuel and fertilizers among US farmers.
Source: The Japan Times / UA.NEWS