FILE PHOTO: Customs officers inspect a shipment of sorghum from the U.S. on a cargo ship at the port in Nantong, Jiangsu province, China February 11, 2020. China Daily via REUTERS/File Photo
BEIJING (Reuters) – China brought in 35.56 billion yuan ($5.05 billion) worth of farm goods from the United States in the first three months of 2020, up 110% from last year, according to customs data.
China has committed to buy additional purchases of U.S. agriculture products totalling $32 billion over two years, under the Phase 1 trade deal.
That would include $12.5 billion above the corresponding 2017 baseline of $24 billion in 2020 and $19.5 billion above the baseline in 2021.
China brought in 7.81 million tonnes of soybeans from the U.S. in the first quarter of 2020, worth 21.88 billion yuan, up 210% from last year, according to data from the General Administration of Customs.
Shipments of U.S. pork to China during the first quarter were 168,000 tonnes, up 640% from the previous year. The value of the cargoes increased by 17 times to 3.04 billion yuan.
Imports of U.S. cotton were at 124,000 tonnes, up 43.5% from last year. The fibre shipments were worth 1.59 billion yuan, up 17%.
(Reporting by Gabriel Crossley and Hallie Gu; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)
