Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said he has felt “pain” as China cuts back on US soybean purchases that have left American farmers struggling – since he himself is “actually a soybean farmer.”
During an interview Sunday with ABC News’ “This Week,” anchor Martha Raddatz told Bessent that “American farmers have really suffered.”
Bessent responded: “Martha, in case you don’t know it, I’m actually a soybean farmer, so I have felt this pain, too.”
Bessent – a former hedge fund executive with a roughly $600 million net worth, according to Forbes – owns substantial soybean and corn farmland in North Dakota, according to his government financial disclosure, earlier reported by CNBC.
The land is worth between $5 million and $25 million, and generates about $100,000 to $1 million in rental income for him annually, according to the disclosure form.
Bessent added that a likely trade deal with China would push the nation to resume its purchasing of US soybeans. Trump on Monday signaled he is confident the US will “come away with the deal,” as he is set to meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Thursday in South Korea.
American farmers have blasted Trump as China – a major foreign customer – has halted its purchases of US soybeans amid heightened trade tensions.
In 2023 and 2024, China alone bought more than half of the soybeans grown in the US.
Meanwhile, the White House recently announced a $20 billion currency swap with Argentina to help the country and its President Javier Milei, an early Trump ally.
That arrangement further angered US soybean farmers, who have lost out on their share of the Chinese market to rivals in Argentina and Brazil.
Just before the bailout was announced, Argentina also dropped its export taxes, making its soybeans even more attractive. China swooped in to purchase 7 million metric tons of soybeans from the nation. In September, it imported zero soybeans from American farmers.
“At a time when we should be finding ways to help American farmers deal with this chaotic trade policy, it’s extremely disappointing to see us bailing out Argentina and Argentina farmers in the process,” Aaron Lehman, president of the Iowa Farmers Union and a soybean grower, told NBC News.
Bessent told Raddatz on Sunday that “our soybean farmers will feel very good about what’s going on” after the China trade deal is announced.
The deal framework will also likely erase Trump’s threatened 100% tariff on China, delay Beijing’s strict export controls on rare earths and transfer ownership of TikTok to American hands, Bessent said.
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