BEIJING, Nov 5 (Reuters) – China is open to buying more US farm goods, but only if the two sides implement their reciprocal tariff-cut agreement, the commerce ministry said on Thursday, signalling tariff concessions remain central to Beijing’s aims.
Following a September summit between Presidents Xi Jinping and Donald Trump in Washington, the two sides proposed a $60 billion package of reciprocal tariff cuts, including roughly $17 billion worth of US farm goods that China imported in 2024, though the plan has yet to be finalised.
“China has consistently been open to expanding purchases of agricultural products from the US, but only on the condition that the two sides implement their agreed ‘$30 billion-for-$30 billion’ reciprocal tariff-reduction arrangement,” commerce ministry spokesperson Huang Ling said.
China hopes the US will work with it to lower tariffs, reduce non-tariff barriers and expand market access, Huang added.
The White House said in May that Beijing had agreed to buy $17 billion of US agricultural goods annually from 2026, with this year’s target adjusted on a prorated basis.
Those purchases were in addition to a commitment made in October last year to buy US soybeans.
China is on track to meet its soybean purchase target, but bought only $7.2 billion of other US agricultural products, including meat and corn, between January and September, according to a Reuters analysis.
Uncertainty persists over when the clock starts on the $17 billion non-soy purchase deal, as the White House has not said whether the timeline began with its May announcement or will begin only once China’s proposed tariff cuts are finalised.
Imports of non-soy farm products were at their lowest level for the period since 2019, at the height of the first US-China trade war.
The two sides have set up an agricultural working group which is expected to meet before the end of the year.
The White House could not be immediately reached for comment outside of working hours.
The slow pace of buying has fuelled doubts over whether imports will rise sharply this year, adding to pressure on US farmers already grappling with high fuel costs.
Traders have told Reuters that lower tariffs would be needed to make large-scale purchases commercially viable.
(Reporting by Ella Cao, Xiuhao Chen and Lewis Jackson; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Sharon Singleton)
