Trump Administration Has No Plans to Help Farmers With the Trade War in 2019

Ag Secretary Perdue says market will start to ‘equilibriate’
U.S. farmers got aid payments this year as crop prices slumped

Soybeans are harvested in Tiskilwa, Illinois, U.S., on Sept. 27, 2018. — Soybeans are harvested in Tiskilwa, Illinois, U.S., on Sept. 27, 2018.
Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg

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By Mario Parker

October 24, 2018 at 10:57 PM UTC

Updated on

October 25, 2018 at 4:27 PM UTC

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The Trump administration has no plans to extend aid to farmers in 2019 on the assumption that the market will recover even if the trade war with China persists, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said.

In July, the administration announced that it would deliver $12 billion in aid to farmers caught in the cross-hairs of President Donald Trump’s trade spat with China. The world’s second-biggest economy slapped tariffs on U.S. shipments of soybeans and pork, among other commodities. Farmers were able to apply for the first round of aid, totaling $4.7 billion, last month. Perdue, speaking to farmers and reporters in a farm shed in Champaign, Illinois, on Wednesday didn’t disclose a specific date for the second round of funding.