U.S. Agri Chief Asks Bessent: Why Did We Lose China’s Soybean Market?

Leaked text messages revealed that some of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet appointees appeared to be scrambling after his tariffs prompted a major trading partner to strike a deal with Argentina — a country recently bailed out by the U.S. with billions of dollars — Peter Rubinstein reported for The Irish Star.

Rollins expressed concern that China had outmaneuvered the U.S. by purchasing Argentine soybeans rather than striking a deal with Washington. (Photo: U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Madelyn Keech, U.S. Secretary of War Flickr) 

A photo captured by an Associated Press (AP) photographer during last week’s United Nations General Assembly showed a panicked exchange of messages between Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

Rollins expressed concern that China had outmaneuvered the U.S. by purchasing Argentine soybeans rather than striking a deal with Washington, despite a U.S.-backed trade agreement requiring Buenos Aires to limit ties with Beijing.

“Just a heads-up. I am getting more intel, but this is highly unfortunate. We bailed out Argentina yesterday, and in return, Argentina removed their export tariffs on grains, reducing their price to China at a time when we would normally be selling to China,” Rollins wrote.

“Soy prices are dropping further because of it. This gives China more leverage on us.”

Bessent pledged last week that the U.S. was “ready to do what is needed within its mandate to support Argentina,” calling the country a “systemically important U.S. ally in Latin America.”

He pointed to an impending deal in which the U.S. would establish a $20 billion swap line with Argentina’s central bank and purchase government debt as the South American nation faces a weakening currency and dwindling reserves.

Midwestern grain trader Ben Scholl wrote on X recently that the move was a mistake: “China and Argentina work together for soybeans as Bessent offers to subsidize the Argentine economy. They think you are stupid,” he said.

Journalist Matthew Yglesias also commented on social media about the leaked messages, writing: “I guess it’s reassuring to know that some members of the administration privately know that they’re f---ing up.”