Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 6/19/19


President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he and Chinese President Xi Jinping “will be having an extended meeting next week at the G-20 in Japan,” news that gave the U.S. stock market a boost.

Two key administration officials, however, this week played down expectations about a near-term deal and did not rule out going forward with the new tariffs the president has threatened to impose on goods from China.   

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer told the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday that regarding possible new tariffs, “The president will make that decision at some point in the next few weeks, and I can’t prejudge that.”  

In a USDA radio broadcast, Lighthizer also declined to predict whether trade talks would resume after the two leaders meet.

“I can’t predict whether we are going to be able to resolve this issue with China. My hope is that we can.  If we can’t, we will have to do something and if there is a better idea than tariffs, I’d like to hear it. I haven’t heard it,” he said.

On Monday, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross told CNBC, “We will eventually make a deal, but if we don’t, the president is perfectly happy with continuing the tariff movements that we’ve already announced, as well as imposing the new ones that he has temporarily suspended.”

President Trump has threatened to impose a 25% tariff on $300 billion of Chinese goods if the two countries fail to reach a trade agreement. The United States has already levied 25% tariff on $250 billion worth of imports from China.
Pork industry anxious for a resolution

Last week, National Pork Producers Council Vice President and Counsel of Global Government Affairs Nick Giordano reiterated at a Global Business Dialogue event in Washington, D.C. , what is at stake for U.S. pork producers.  

America's pork producers still face a 62% tariff into China, where there could be enormous trade opportunities in helping offset reduced domestic production due to African swine fever (ASF), a pig-only disease with no vaccine treatment that poses no human health or food safety risks, but that is almost always fatal for hogs.

"China needs reliable suppliers of pork now, and likely, well into the future. The question U.S. hog farmers are asking: 'Will we get the main course, or will we get the crumbs off the table?'" said Giordano, noting that Chinese pork buyers are reaching out to those in Europe, Canada and Brazil for supplies.

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