US expects Beijing’s zero-Covid reversal to help keep China its No 1 buyer of farm goods

US Department of Agriculture reports China is ‘on track’ to be leading market for third straight year

Report also finds that the ‘phase one’ trade deal of 2020 remains a factor in bolstering US agricultural exports to China

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A farmer shovels corn inside a semitrailer during a harvest in Buda, Illinois, U.S., soybeans, pork, corn and beef.on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2019. The US Department of Agriculture reports that the ‘phase one’ trade deal had helped keep China a leading market for several commodities. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 6:38am, 14 Jan 2023Updated: 7:27am, 14 Jan 2023

Beijing’s break from its zero-Covid policy should help China maintain its status this year as the largest buyer of US farm products, the US Department of Agriculture has concluded.

The world’s No 2 economy is “on track” to be the leading sales destination for US agricultural commodities for a third consecutive year in fiscal year 2023, the USDA reported on Thursday.

“Despite the economy’s anticipated challenges in 2023, demand for US agricultural products remains strong,” the department said.

The department also found that the “phase one” trade deal stuck three years ago between Beijing and Washington during the Donald Trump administration has continued to bolster American agricultural exports to China.

Despite enduring rifts on a wide range of issues – from an increasingly fierce hi-tech war to Taiwan’s security – agriculture remains a relatively bright spot for US-China relations.

A farmer planting soybeans in Springfield, Nebraska. China continues to be the single largest buyer of US soybeans in the first 11 months of 2022, data shows. Photo: AP

After three years, China reopened its borders this week to international travel and ended a requirement for visitors to quarantine, reversing its strict Covid-19 containment strategies in December.