As soybean sales to China trickle in, the Trump administration on Dec. 8 unveiled a farm aid package, offering $12 billion in assistance to farmers hit hard by low crop prices and the impact of tariffs.
The aid package includes as much as $11 billion in one-time payments to farmers who grow corn, cotton, oats, soybeans and wheat, among other crops, under the Agriculture Department’s newly designed Farmer Bridge Assistance program. Some $1 billion is being held back to assess needs of growers of specialty crops, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said.
Farmers who qualify for the FBA Program can expect payments to be released by Feb. 28, 2026. Eligible farmers should ensure their 2025 acreage reporting is accurate by Dec. 19. Commodity-specific payment rates will be released by the end of the month. This national loss average is based on FSA reported planted acres, Economic Research Service cost of production estimates, World Agricultural Supply and Demand Estimates yields and prices.
Soybeans and products were lower last week, and it seems that Chinese demand is part of the price now, said Jack Scoville, analyst at Price Futures Group.
The USDA announced new sales Dec. 8, and the Trump administration says China is on pace to buy the 12 million tons of U.S. soybeans it announced a few weeks ago by the end of February.
“The U.S. will have to compete with South America for sales in a diminishing Chinese market and U.S. prices are too high to complete many new sales,” Scoville said.
Corn market trends remain mixed, Scoville said. He is seeing discussions that export demand is less now because of more world competition and ethanol demand is less as well.
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