U.S. President Donald Trump arrives for a state banquet hosted by Chinese language President Xi Jinping on the Nice Corridor of the Individuals on Might 14, 2026 in Beijing, China.
Alex Wong | Getty Pictures
BEIJING, Might 16 (Reuters) – China and the US have agreed to increase agricultural commerce by tariff reductions and deal with non-tariff boundaries and market entry points, China’s commerce ministry mentioned on Saturday after this week’s summit in Beijing.
The agreements are “preliminary” and can be “finalised as quickly as doable,” the ministry mentioned following U.S. President Donald Trump’s go to.
China’s farm imports from the U.S. nonetheless face an extra 10% levy after final 12 months’s rounds of tit-for-tat tariffs sharply curtailed commerce, which fell 65.7% year-on-year to $8.4 billion in 2025, in keeping with U.S. Division of Agriculture knowledge.
The commerce ministry mentioned each side goal to advertise two-way commerce, together with in agricultural merchandise, by measures similar to reciprocal tariff reductions throughout a variety of products. It didn’t specify which merchandise.
China resumed purchases of some U.S. farm items after an October assembly, fulfilling a U.S.-stated dedication to purchase 12 million metric tons of soybeans by the tip of February. It has additionally bought some U.S. wheat cargoes and huge volumes of sorghum.
Market watchers anticipate a ten% reduce in soybean tariffs, which may permit personal Chinese language crushers to renew purchases that have been largely sidelined throughout final 12 months’s U.S. harvest, when state crop merchants have been the one patrons.
“Tariff reductions on agricultural merchandise would mark a normalization of China-U.S. farm commerce, permitting business patrons to re-enter the market,” mentioned Johnny Xiang, founder of Beijing-based AgRadar Consulting.
The ministry mentioned each side agreed to “resolve or make substantive progress” on non-tariff boundaries and market entry points.
China will work to deal with U.S. considerations over registration of beef services and poultry exports from sure U.S. states, it mentioned.
Beijing on Friday granted five-year registration extensions to 425 U.S. beef vegetation that had largely been shut out after their registrations lapsed final 12 months, and authorised new five-year registrations for 77 extra U.S. services.
U.S. Commerce Consultant Jamieson Greer mentioned on Friday the U.S. expects China to purchase “double-digit billions” value of U.S. farm items over the following three years, though neither facet has but launched particulars on particular merchandise, values or quantity.
