Highlights:
President Donald Trump warned he may put new tariffs on farm imports, especially rice from India and fertilizer from Canada, because trade talks with both countries have stalled. He spoke at the White House while rolling out a multi-billion-dollar farm relief program and criticized India and other Asian suppliers for sending in low-priced goods.
Trump said imports are hurting American farmers and promised to use tariffs more aggressively to protect them. He said the government will give “$12 billion in economic assistance to American farmers,” paid for with money collected from tariffs.
“We're really taking in trillions of dollars, if you think about it,” Trump said, adding that other countries “took advantage of us like nobody's ever seen.”
India came up repeatedly during a long discussion about rice imports, which a Louisiana farmer said were damaging southern growers. When told that Indian companies own 'the two largest brands' in US retail rice, Trump replied, “All right, and we'll take care of it. That's great. It's so easy… Tariffs, again, solve the problem in two minutes.”
He added, “They shouldn't be dumping... I mean, I heard that, I heard that from others. You can't do that.”
Trump also suggested tariffs on fertilizer from Canada to boost local production. He noted that much of it comes from Canada and said the US would impose 'very severe tariffs' if needed because 'we can do it here.'
Agricultural trade between India and the US has grown over the last decade, with India shipping basmati rice, spices, and seafood, while importing US almonds, cotton, and pulses. Still, disagreements over subsidies, market access, and WTO cases, especially involving rice and sugar, have often strained negotiations.
