2018年CRI Fearing trade war, US farmers worry about uncertain pork market

U.S. farmers are suggesting they're worried about their future amid the trade frictions 1 between China and the United States, particularly in the American pork sector 3.

China is the third largest importer of American pork.

However, there are concerns the current U.S.-China trade frictions will deeply affect the pork market.

Many farmers in Illinois, a major pork producing state, are now said to be considering whether or not to raise pigs, as the price of pork has been on the decline 4 since the trade skirmish first started.

Steve Warrick is one of more than 2-thousand pork producers in the state.

"When we to go buy pigs, we're going to look at the cost of buying them. We're going to look at what they are going to possibly be doing in the next five and a half months, which is the length it will take to finish them. So if there's no money in it, why would you raise pigs? "

Warrick has been earning around 40-thousand dollars a year by raising 400 pigs, but is now concerned that pork prices may continue to fall if the U.S. loses the Chinese pork market.

Warrick admits he's in a difficult position, because if he doesn't raise pigs, he knows his income will also suffer.

"Then we have to make electricity, we have to pay gas. We have quite a little bit of a bill to pay. I can't say I can reach up in the air and pull 40,000 dollars out of my pocket. I can't do that. It's going to be a tough decision and we're going to have to take a pencil and paper and look at it and say, can we do it? "

Warrick says the trade friction 2 launched by the Trump 5 administration with China is deeply hurting Americans who rely on export markets.

"The smaller guys such as us, ourselves, we need the exporting market in order to stay in business. We would be the first ones hurt, very much so."

Warrick says there is a unified 6 hope among many farmers like himself that the two sides can resolve the trade disputes through negotiations 7 as soon as possible, saying their livelihoods 8 are at stake.

Valued at 6.5 billion dollars, over a quarter of American-produced pork products were exported in 2017.

And nearly one-sixth of those exports made their way to China.

Pork prices continue to fall on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Chris Robinson is a trader in Chicago.

"The problem is we have a lot of supply and I think people are finally waking up to the fact that, if there is a problem, the demand might not be there. I just think that watching it happen is upsetting. The lowest prices we've had in 14 months. So could they go lower? Yes."