Newhouse China Trade Talks Vital For NW, U.S. Ag

The trade war between the U.S. and China escalated Friday, after the Trump Administration implemented new and increased tariffs on imported products.  Over the weekend, President Trump tweeted out his plans to increase existing tariffs from 10% to 25%.  Many in the Ag industry have expressed concerns that their products will suffer the brunt of the retaliatory tariffs China has already said they will implement.  Despite the tariff changes, trade talks between the two countries continue in Washington D.C.

Central Washington's Dan Newhouse says while he was hopeful a deal could have been struck before these increases were implemented, he says long term a fair trade deal between the U.S. and China is critical for Washington Ag and all American farmers.

“We’ll all benefit a lot and I think it will set the stage for further agreements with other countries that we also need to have so that we can get back to normal our trading with other counties.”

While much of the conversation about the trade war has focused on mid-west crops, such as soybeans, Newhouse says several Northwest commodity groups visited D.C. to ensure lawmakers know how this trade war is impacting the Evergreen State.

“To make the point that represent many of these products, both hay and cherry for sure and other products that we produce, they’ve been here making the point of the importance of the Chinese market.”

Only a week ago, the White House was boosting hopes that the U.S. and China would resolve their trade dispute this week and potentially announce a new trade deal.

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