US beef exports show brunt of China impasse
The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has published August red meat export data, which was delayed due to the government shutdown.
Data show beef exports were substantially lower than a year ago, impacted by an impasse with China that has effectively locked US beef out of the world’s largest import market.
August beef exports totalled 83,388 mt, down 19% from a year ago and the lowest since June 2020. Export value fell 18% to $695.5 million, the lowest since February 2021.
While exports to China plummeted, shipments were fairly steady to South Korea and trended higher than a year ago to the Caribbean and Central and South America.
From January to August, beef exports were 9.5% below last year at 775,188 mt, while value declined 9% to $6.4 billion.
