Trade

Michael Birnbaum, Mary Ilyushina, Paul Sonne and Isabelle Khurshudyan reported on the front page of Thursday’s Washington Post that, “Russia on Thursday launched an attack on cities and military installations across Ukraine, forcing thousands of civilians to flee, as Ukraine’s president called for his nation to fight in the streets and NATO leaders said Europe’s security had been fundamentally altered.”

New York Times writer Ana Swanson reported today that, “The Biden administration criticized China in a new report released Wednesday morning for failing to uphold a wide range of trade commitments, including promises it had made when it joined the World Trade Organization in 2001 and others in a trade deal signed with the Trump administration in 2020.”

The USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) indicated last week in its monthly Feed Outlook report that, “Ukraine borders Russia to the north and east, Belarus to the north, and several Eastern European countries—Poland, Romania, Hungary, Slovakia, and Moldova—to the west.”

A news release on Tuesday from the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service stated that, “The American agricultural industry posted its highest annual export levels ever recorded in 2021, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced today.”

Reuters writers Andrea Shalal and David Lawder reported this week that, “U.S. officials called on Monday for ‘concrete action’ from China to make good on its commitment to purchase $200 billion in additional U.S. goods and services in 2020 and 2021 under the ‘Phase 1’ trade deal signed by former President Donald Trump.”

Wall Street Journal writer William Mauldin reported on the front page of Tuesday’s paper that, “A senior U.S. diplomat accused Russia of trying to destabilize Ukraine, and a Kremlin representative in turn criticized Washington for stoking fears and tensions as the two sides squared off in a fractious debate in the United Nations Security Council.”

Earlier this week, Reuters writers David Stanway and Muyu Xu reported that, “China’s ambitious low-carbon goals should not come at the expense of energy and food security or the ‘normal life’ of ordinary people, President Xi Jinping said, signalling a more cautious approach to climate change as the economy slows.”

Robyn Dixon, David L. Stern, Isabelle Khurshudyan, John Hudson and Rachel Pannett reported on the front page of Wednesday’s Washington Post that, “President Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin traded provocations Tuesday, with the Kremlin broadcasting a new round of military exercises within striking distance of Ukraine and Washington rushing a fresh shipment of weapons to Kyiv while suggesting thousands of U.S. troops could be deployed soon to shore up allies’ defenses in Eastern Europe.”

Reuters writers Hallie Gu and Dominique Patton reported last week that, “China’s soybean imports from the United States in 2021 rose from the previous year as it stepped up agricultural purchases under a trade deal agreed with Washington, while annual Brazilian shipments fell, customs data showed on Thursday.”

Wall Street Journal writer Lingling Wei reported last week that, “Beijing is trying to fortify the Chinese economy against a prolonged period of tension with the U.S. and other countries, stockpiling some essentials and planning on more domestic production as it accelerates efforts to make China less dependent on the world.”

Wall Street Journal writer Josh Zumbrun reported last week that, “Beijing’s commitment to step up purchases of U.S. goods and services under a 2020 trade pact expires Friday [December 31st] with China expected to miss its targets by a wide margin, creating a dilemma for the Biden administration as it calibrates a response.”

Last week, Bloomberg News reported that, “China’s reaffirmation of a long-term goal to be almost entirely self-sufficient in pork production means it will keep scooping up global grain supplies to feed the world’s largest pig herd.”

Reuters News reported earlier this week that, “China’s November soybean imports from the United States surged from October, customs data showed on Monday, as the effects of the export disruptions from Hurricane Ida earlier this year started to clear.”

In its monthly Wheat Outlook report last week, the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) stated that, “U.S. wheat exports in October dropped by nearly half from the previous month to only 46 million bushels, the smallest monthly total in more than 30 years.”

Reuters writers Hallie Gu and Karl Plume reported this week that, “China’s soybean imports from the United States in 2021/22 are expected to fall sharply from last season after loading delays following Hurricane Ida.”

On Tuesday, the USDA released its Outlook for U.S. Agricultural Trade, a quarterly report from the Department’s Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) and Economic Research Service (ERS).  

Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday that, “China pulled back on its already halting progress toward meeting its U.S. trade deal targets, slowing purchases of all types of goods covered by the agreement despite calls from the Biden administration for Beijing to adhere to its commitments.” 

Reuters writers Hallie Gu, Cheng Leng and Shivani Singh reported recently that, “China’s October soybean imports from the United States fell sharply from the previous year, customs data showed on Sunday, hit by poor demand and limited exports.”

In its November Livestock, Dairy, and Poultry Outlook report this week, the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) indicated that, “September beef exports totaled 289 million pounds, up 20.9 percent (or 49.9 million pounds) from a year earlier.”

Wall Street Journal writers Gordon Lubold, Alex Leary and Lingling Wei reported in Tuesday’s paper that, “President Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping used a virtual meetingMonday evening to cool tensions between the two powers as the leaders seek to manage issues they disagree on and identify ways to communicate to avert conflict.”