USDA expects deals on farmer aid, Chinese soy buys within weeks

By Susan Heavey and Leah Douglas WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The Trump administration expects to announce an aid package for U.S. farmers within two weeks and a deal on Chinese soybean purchases, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said on Monday, without providing further details. The administration of President Donald Trump has said for months that it would issue aid for farmers hit by low crop prices and trade disputes, but has not yet issued any plan or amount for the aid. U.S. farmers lost billions in soybean sales this year as top buyer China turned to Brazil and Argentina amid tense trade talks with Washington. "We'll have an announcement probably in the next week or two on what that's going to look like," Rollins, the head of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, told CNBC of the farmer aid. The American Farm Bureau Federation said on Monday that the aid is "urgently needed" as farmers face the compounding pressures of higher input costs and lower crop prices. In October, after Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, China agreed to buy 12 million metric tons of American soybeans through January, according to the Trump administration. China purchased nearly 1.6 million metric tons of soybeans over three days last week, its largest single-week tally in two years, buoying crop prices.  Two cargo vessels were en route to grain terminals near New Orleans on Monday to load with China's first U.S. soybean shipments since May, according to a shipping schedule seen by Reuters. Asked about China's commitments to buy U.S. soybeans, Rollins said: "We've got a significant way to go." "I know they are inking the deal this week or next week," Rollins said, adding that she was confident China would honor its purchase commitments. "Every sign is their commitment remains true that they will indeed buy, or purchase, 12 million metric tons or put the order in," she said.  "Even if the purchase order comes in before the end of December, those will move early next year," she added. Trump said in a Monday post on Truth Social that he and Xi had discussed soybeans and other farm products in a phone call and that they had "done a good, and very important, deal for our Great Farmers." A spokesperson for the Chinese embassy said the two countries had reached consensus on agricultural trade, among other issues, during October trade talks in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur. China "will continue to uphold an attitude of openness and cooperation, deepening mutually beneficial cooperation with global trading partners," the spokesperson added. (Reporting by Susan Heavey and Leah Douglas in Washington; Editing by Jan Harvey, Lisa Shumaker and Deepa Babington)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)