China may refuse to import soybeans from US in response to trade war unleashed by Trump

Beijing. March 26. Silkroadnews - China, most likely, will refuse to import soybeans from the US as its first move in response to the authorization of increase in tariffs on Chinese goods, the newspaper “People’s Daily” reports.
According to Hua Chunying, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, 62% of US soybeans are exported to China. However, what China exports to the US is mostly something they have no comparative advantage in making or do not make at all. The US urges China to buy what they want to sell, yet refuses to sell what China wants to buy, Hua said. She urged both sides to calm down and have constructive dialogues and consultations to find mutually beneficial solutions.
The American Soybean Association (ASA) expressed concerns about a potential trade war that could cause great damage to soybean production in the US. The ASA President John Heisdorffer stressed, China is the largest buyer of the US soybeans in the world.
Meanwhile, China has been strengthening cooperation with large soybean exporters in South America. For example, China recently increased the volume of soybean purchases in Brazil.
According to Chi Jingtao, CEO of COFCO, China’s leading foodstuffs conglomerate, the company plans to increase purchases of soybeans from Brazil from 4 to 7.2 tons, and also intends to invest $459 million to build 30 granaries in Brazil.
In addition, Chinese enterprises are supporting Brazil in building infrastructure to help the country to improve the export capabilities for soybeans.