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Trump tells farmers to ‘bear with me’ on tariffs... President Donald Trump is asking American growers to bear with him as tariffs threaten to inflict short-term financial pain. In his Tuesday evening address to Congress, Trump promised his newly announced tariffs will yield even better results than the Phase 1 trade deal he struck with China during his first term.
“It may be a little bit of an adjustment period,” he said. “We had that before when I made the deal with China, $50 billion of purchases and I said ‘just bear with me’ and they did, they did — probably have to bear with me again, and this will be even better.”
Other highlights from his 100-minute address:
Economic and Policy Achievements. Trump touted his administration’s swift actions in the first 43 days, claiming to have accomplished more than most administrations do in four or eight years. He highlighted: A 27-point swing in public opinion toward believing the country is headed in the right direction, a record 41-point jump in small business optimism and nearly 100 Executive Orders signed and over 400 Executive Actions taken.
Immigration and Border Security. The president emphasized his administration’s efforts to curb illegal immigration. He called for additional funding for more detention beds and increased deportation flights, celebrated stringent immigration policies and criticized his predecessor’s “open border” strategies.
Foreign Policy and Trade. Trump defended his newly enacted 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico, along with a doubling of tariffs on China. Trump is imposing reciprocal tariffs on all U.S. trading partners starting April 2. Trump argued that countries like the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada have imposed higher tariffs on the U.S. for decades, and it is time to reciprocate. He suggested that imported agricultural products might be inferior, uninspected and potentially harmful, positioning American products as superior. Trump asked farmers to endure the short-term challenges of tariffs, promising them a profitable outcome and expressing his affection for them.
Egg prices. Trump briefly mentioned working to reduce egg prices, instructing USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins to “do a good job on that one.” Trump claimed “Joe Biden especially let the price of eggs get out of control — and we are working hard to get it back down.”
Government Reform. The president highlighted his efforts to reshape the federal government. He discussed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk, aimed at shrinking the government workforce and cutting budgets and called for the repeal of the CHIPS and Science Act.
Democratic Response. The speech was marked by vocal protests from Democrats. Rep. Al Green (D-Texas) was removed for interrupting the president. Several Democratic members exited the chamber in protest. Some Democrats brought former government employees affected by recent cuts as their guests.
Trump to delay Canada, Mexico auto tariffs for one month... President Donald Trump is exempting automakers from newly imposed tariffs on Mexico and Canada for one month, the White House said. Bloomberg reported administration officials met Tuesday to discuss the matter with the heads of Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co. and Stellantis NV, according to people familiar with the situation.
Part of the reason for a reprieve would be to buy time for the automakers to come up with plans to move more investment and production to the U.S., some of the people said. Administration officials have stressed throughout the recent discussions that Trump wants automakers to return investments and vehicle production to the United States.
Even with the one-month reprieve, 25% tariffs still cover other imports from Canada and Mexico. The 20% tariffs on Chinese imports remain unchanged.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is not open to lifting Canada’s full package of retaliatory tariffs if Trump leaves any tariffs on Canada in place. Canada’s counter-tariffs against C$30 billion ($20.8 billion) in U.S. products, include cosmetics, tires, fruit and wine. Canada’s counter-tariffs will expand to an additional C$125 billion in U.S. items later in March. The second phase would include American-made cars and trucks, aluminum, along with a long list of food and agricultural products.
Farmer sentiment rises in February amid jump in current conditions... Farmer sentiment improved in February as the Purdue University/CME Group Ag Economy Barometer climbed 11 points from the previous month to 152 and 41 points (36.9%) above last year. An improvement in the current situation on U.S. farms was the primary driver behind the stronger sentiment among producers, while future expectations rose modestly.
U.S. civil service board reinstates thousands of fired USDA employees... A U.S. board that reviews the firings of federal employees on Wednesday ordered USDA to temporarily reinstate thousands of workers who lost their jobs as part of the Trump administration’s layoffs of federal workers. Cathy Harris, a member of the U.S. Merit System Protection Board, in a written order blocked USDA from firing probationary employees, who typically have less than one year of service, for 45 days while a challenge to the terminations plays out. The decision was issued a day after a federal judge blocked Trump from firing Harris and removing her from her position with the board without cause before her term expires in three years.
SCOTUS rejects Trump on USAID foreign-aid freeze... A divided U.S. Supreme Court dealt a blow to President Trump’s foreign-aid freeze, reinstating a lower court order that requires the quick disbursement of as much as $2 billion owed to contractors for already completed work. Over four dissents, the justices on Wednesday rejected Trump’s request to toss out the order. In a one-paragraph decision that gave little explanation, the majority told a federal trial judge to “clarify what obligations the government must fulfill” since his original payment deadline has now passed.
Another cut to Russia’s wheat export forecast... Russia’s 2024-25 wheat exports are expected to total 40.5 MMT, according to Rusagrotrans, down 1.5 MMT from its prior forecast. That includes shipments to Eurasian Economic Union countries – Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Armenia.
The ag railway transport company said 1.95 MMT of wheat was exported by Russia in February, the lowest level for the month in five years. It expects March exports to decline even more, “as the volume of applications at deep-water ports, which typically account for around 80% of total exports, is less than 1 MMT.” Rusagrotrans expects Russia to export 1.5 MMT to 1.6 MMT of wheat this month, which would be the lowest in four years.
Rusagrotrans said it’s possible only 7 MMT of the 10.6 MMT export quota for Feb. 15 to June 30 may be exported. It noted replacing “missing” exports from Russia “will be challenging for the global market over the next four months.”