After cancelling record orders of US pork amid a raging trade war, China is ready to further cut back on US agricultural imports, analysts said.
Last week, Chinese importers withdrew orders for 12,030 metric tonnes of American pork – the largest cancellation since May 2020, early in the Covid-19 pandemic – according to US Department of Agriculture figures.
Analysts expect American pig farmers to feel the pinch, despite most not relying exclusively on the Chinese market, and producers of other agricultural goods to share a bigger burden in the trade war.
“This is a targeted response from China to hurt parts of the [US] that are red,” said Dexter Roberts, a US-based senior fellow at the Atlantic Council think tank’s Global China Hub.
Most American farm states are considered Republican-leaning, and voted for US President Donald Trump in last November’s election.
“People are very aware of this and very worried,” Roberts said. “One bad year and you might be mortgaging the farm.”
