Soybean Farmers in the United States: Rates Could Result in "Serious Damage"

Soybean producers, apple growers and auto workers are among the American workers who are preparing for the fallout of a trade war between the United States and China.

The United States imposed tariffs of $ 34 billion. said are the unfair business practices of the country. Beijing called it the start of "the biggest trade war of economic history" and fought back with tariffs on billions of dollars worth of US exports. Another $ 16 billion in tariffs on Chinese imports is expected over the next two weeks.

Many products suddenly became more expensive. Additional taxes will feed through supply chains, forcing companies in both countries to decide whether they should themselves suffer financial losses or pbad them on to consumers. If demand falls, jobs will be threatened.

US industries facing tariffs include cotton, dairy, auto and soybeans – the main agricultural export from the United States to China in 2017. Many of these industries have their roots in the Midwest. The southern United States, regions that helped propel President Donald Trump to victory in 2016 on the promise to put America first.

John Heisdorffer, a soybean producer from Iowa and president of the American Soybean Association. Soy is the first agricultural export for the United States, and China is the largest market for the purchase of these exports, "said Heisdorffer in a statement." The maths are simple. You tax soybean exports at 25%, and you suffer serious damage to American farmers.

The group's lobbying efforts include a social media campaign in which "individual soy producers who will be directly affected by the conflict. According to the government, 18 states grow about 96 percent of US soybeans. All but two of them, Illinois and Minnesota, went to Trump against Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Trump maintains that tariffs will push China to deal with US trade complaints, including theft intellectual property. include taxes on imports of a variety of US dairy products. It comes at a time when the US dairy industry was already preparing for new tariffs on cheese exported to Mexico. The cheese tariffs were put in place in response to a decision by the Trump administration on tariffs.

Jaime Castaneda, Senior Vice President of the US Dairy Export Council, said retaliatory tariffs were a "two shots". left the industry "shaky".

"You have to put all this in context," Castaneda said in an e-mail. "Producers have had 3 years of low prices and this downturn looked promising, we were going to regain profit margins for the first time in years.All of this is gone now."

US growers are also concerned about the new rates d & # 39; export. Tracy Grondine, spokeswoman for the US Apple Association, said China had "significant growth potential" for US apple growers.

The industry has access only to the Chinese market – the largest consumer market in the world – about three years ago. According to Grondine, the nation has already become the sixth largest export market of the apple industry in the United States.

"If the momentum is lost, it will be difficult to find it. What we will probably see in the short term is that apples for the export market will instead dominate the US market, "she said. United States could dive seriously, which would cost producers money. "

" This will affect producers from coast to coast to coast, "said Grondine

. A spokeswoman for the Juice Products Association said that they would have a "negative impact" on "the American juice industry and hurt consumers who appreciate American quality juices."

Daimler, the automaker behind Mercedes-Benz, had already warned last month its profits will fall this year. The company accused him of a trade dispute between the United States and China, saying the rates would result in "lower than expected SUV sales and higher than expected costs." Daimler said these costs would not be fully pbaded on to customers. A spokesman for the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers said Friday in an email that some US automakers would probably not feel a major impact from the start.

Most companies probably have a 30-day supply in China. spokesman said. And most US cars sold in China are manufactured in factories in China, so they are immune to tariffs.

But the longer the trade war lasts, the more the impact could become serious, the spokesman said. ] Other US industries affected by export taxes include meats, fruit and vegetable producers, dairy farmers, tobacco, pet products and seafood. Imports will affect parts for aircraft and other vehicles manufactured in China, as well as some industrial machinery and some medical devices.

These tariffs and China's retaliation come to add to other countries, including China and Mexico. Trump administration import rights on steel and aluminum.