Watch the video: https://youtu.be/TYhkKgyDobM
Background
Back on October 30th, President Trump met Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the APEC Conference in South Korea in a highly anticipated meeting for relief on the ratcheting US-China trade war.
You might recall the photo op of a roll of five to six Chinese leaders on the left side of the table not to be outmatched from the American delegation on the right, led by Trump, Secretary of State, Marco Rubio; Trade Secretary, Jameson Grier, and Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent.
Despite the show for cameras, It seemed like most of the negotiations took place a day or two before the two heads of state met.
When all was said and done, an exuberant President Trump, heading back to the USA on Airforce One, announced a China “trade deal” gleefully saying that China had agreed to buy “large amounts American soybeans immediately,” interjecting that, “Our American farmers will be very, very happy.”
The reality: China drags its feet
Now in December, two months after the highly anticipated meeting, records show that China has only purchased 2.7 metric tons of a promised 12 metric tons by the end of 2025, well short of the stated goal and with only a few weeks remaining of the year.
In the October meeting, a confident President Trump reiterated the deal China agreed to was to purchase 12 million metric tons of soybeans for the year ending in 2025 and up to 25 million metric tons for each of the next three years.
Billion dollar bailout
Just this past week, President Trump announced that his administration will be paying out $12 billion to American farmers in relief for the casualties caused by the trade war.
What that amount is staggering, there have been reports that the figure is only one-third the amount of the value harvested by American soybean farmers---estimated in the neighborhood of 30-40 billion dollars.
Conclusion
Despite Trump’s over promise that China would be buying American soybeans “very, very soon,” the reality is China has the leverage and is using it to their advantage.
While China may have made certain promises during the negotiations, their actions to slowly walk back their word is inflicting pain on American soybean farmers, a loyal Trump base.
China’s inaction is a signal to Trump and his administration that if you play with fire, you will get burned by fire---starting a trade war with China has consequences.
NYTimes source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/12/08/us/politics/trump-farmers-aid-bailout.html?searchResultPosition=3
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