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Soybean Prices Improve 15 Percent if Tariffs Resolved
By: Liz Brown
If the U.S. can get its trade disputes resolved,one economist says soybean prices could jump as much as 15 percent higher. Farm Journal’s Ag Web Dot Com quotes Jackson Takach of Farmer Mac as saying there’s no underestimating the importance of trade to agriculture.
“One of every $4 or $5 in farm income is from foreign sources,” Takach says. “Six of our major trading partners who’ve issued retaliatory tariffs represent about 53 percent of our total agricultural exports.” He says recent movement on the NAFTA negotiations and the U.S. signaling a willingness to negotiate with China give him some reasons for optimism. “If we start to lift some of the veil of uncertainty, net cash income reductions could be pretty low,” Takach predicted. “if we can get some of these trade issues resolved, the upside could be pretty high for U.S. agriculture.
However, if everything stays the same, I think the USDA predictions for lower net cash income are accurate.” Takach says if the U.S. and China resolve their differences and China drops its tariff, soybean market prices could improve as much as 15 percent.
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