President Donald Trump announced Monday he has directed Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue to launch a second round of payments to farmers impacted by the U.S. trade war with counties such as China.
"Today I am making good on my promise to defend our Farmers & Ranchers from unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations," Trump said in a post on Twitter.
"I have authorized Secretary Perdue to implement the 2nd round of Market Facilitation Payments," he added. "Our economy is stronger than ever-we stand with our Farmers!"
A statement from the Agriculture Department said producers of certain commodities will now be eligible to receive Market Facilitation Program payments for the second half of their 2018 production.
The second round of aid includes approximately $4.9 billion in direct payments to producers of certain commodities, bringing the total payments to farmers to nearly $9.6 billion.
"The President reaffirmed his support for American farmers and ranchers and made good on his promise, authorizing the second round of payments to be made in short order," Perdue said.
"While there have been positive movements on the trade front, American farmers are continuing to experience losses due to unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations," he added. "This assistance will help with short-term cash flow issues as we move into the new year."
The announcement of the second round of payments to farmers comes after Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping recently announced a 90-day trade truce.
Last week's news that Chinese state-owned companies purchased U.S. soybeans for the first time in more than six months was seen as evidence China is making good on its pledges to the U.S.
(Photo: Marc Nozell)
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