Posted on May, 8, 2025 at 04:22 pm
China has agreed to enter talks with the USA on tariff issues, after the White House indicated the possibility of adjusting its tariff policies and proactively reached out to Beijing through various channels, according to a 7 May China Daily report quoting China’s Ministry of Commerce.
Chinese Vice-Premier He Lifeng, the Chinese lead for China-US economic and trade affairs, would hold meetings with the US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, during his visit to Switzerland from 9-12 May, a spokesperson with the ministry was reported as saying.
China made its decision after evaluating the US information and taking into account global expectations, China’s interests, as well as the appeals of US businesses and consumers, the spokesperson said.
“China’s position on these matters has been consistent – whether through dialogue or action – China’s resolve to safeguard its development interests will not change, nor will its stance and goal of upholding international fairness and justice and maintaining the international economic and trade order,” the spokesperson added.
“China is ready to fight to the end if needed, but its door remains open for dialogue.”
Alongside entering negotiations with the USA, the spokesperson said China would continue expanding its opening-up, firmly defending the multilateral trading system centred on the World Trade Organization (WTO), and continuing to share development opportunities with countries around the world.
Against this backdrop, China says its grain and oilseed supply is secure amid its ongoing trade war with the USA, according to a top government planning official quoted in a World Grain report citing a local news agency.
Zhao Chenxin, deputy director of the National Development and Reform Commission, was reported as saying by a Xinhua news agency that US crops such as soyabeans, corn and sorghum that were used mainly as feed grains in China “can be easily substituted” and that the global supply was “quite sufficient”.
According to Chenxin, China’s domestic grain reserves are abundant and its grain imports from the USA accounted for a small percentage of domestic consumption in 2024.
“Even if we stop buying feed grains and oilseeds from the USA, there would be minimal impact on China’s grain supply,” he added.
As of 22 April, the USA had imposed a minimum 145% tariff on Chinese exports, while China raised its minimum tariff rate on US imports to 125%, World Grain wrote.
According to the 30 April report, specific US agricultural imports to China are facing higher levies: wheat 140%, corn 140%, meat 135%-145%, sorghum 135% and soyabeans 135%.
Chenxin said he was confident in China’s ability to maintain grain self-sufficiency and ensure national food security, highlighting efforts to boost production capacity and diversify import sources.
In March, China announced it would set a 2025 production target of about 700M tonnes, higher than its 2024 target of 650M tonnes, following last year’s record harvest of 706.5M tonnes.
China also raised its 2025 budget for stockpiling grain, edible oils and other materials by 6.1% compared to the previous year to CNY131.66bn (US$18.12bn), according to an official report.
China, the world’s largest importer of agricultural goods for its 1.4bn people, imported more than 157M tonnes of grains and soybeans last year but had been taking steps to lower its dependence on imports, World Grain wrote.
Source: OFI