U.S. agriculture secretary unsure whether coronavirus will slow Chinese buys of U.S. farm goods

Reuters

Published Jan 29, 2020 10:40AM ET

U.S. agriculture secretary unsure whether coronavirus will slow Chinese buys of U.S. farm goods

CHICAGO (Reuters) - U.S. Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue said on Wednesday he does not know whether China's coronavirus outbreak will affect Beijing's pledge to radically increase purchases of American farm goods under an initial trade deal.

U.S. grain and soybean futures have dropped recently on fears over the spread of the coronavirus.

"It obviously is going to have some ramifications economy wide which we hope will not inhibit the purchase goal that we have for this year," Perdue told reporters on a call.