Farmland Calls for Unamended China PNTR

September 6, 2000

As the Senate Tuesday headed into the final act on whether to grant permanent normal trade relations with China, Farmland Industries, Inc., Kansas City, MO, the nation's largest farmer-owned cooperative, called for approval with no amendments.

"PNTR is good for American farmers and ranchers and the Chinese people," said Bob Honse, Farmland president and CEO. "This past May the House of Representatives took a bold step in support of expanding trade with China by approving PNTR. Now, we're asking the Senate to do the same and approve the bill without any amendments."

With PNTR approval, the United States will have the opportunity to realize the benefits of the U.S.-China accession agreement into the World Trade Organization, Farmland said. The accession agreement lowers tariffs comparable to other WTO member nations. For example, the current tariff of 45 percent on beef will plunge to 12 percent by 2004. China will eventually commit to allow imports of up to 7.3 million metric tons of U.S. wheat upon WTO accession. Without PNTR, the United States could not take advantage of the accession agreement, allowing competitors to reap the benefits of the growing Chinese market.

"Farmland has been a long-time supporter of free and fair trade," Honse said. "We're encouraging our farmer-owners and our employees to contact their Senators in support of PNTR. Expanding trade is important for American agriculture, and China holds American agriculture's greatest growth opportunity."

REUTERS reports that as debate opened Tuesday, a "small but determined band of Beijing critics" continued to try to scuttle the hotly contested bill. Republican Leader Trent Lott said he expected a final vote on the measure by Sept 15.

President Clinton's allies expressed confidence they would have more than enough votes to ensure the bill's passage, which would end the annual review of Beijing's trade status and guarantee Chinese goods the same low-tariff access to the U.S. market as products from nearly every other nation. But opponents, led by Sen. Jesse Helms (R-NC) and Paul Wellstone (D-MN), said they could derail the measure by bogging it down with amendments.

That would force another contentious vote in a bitterly divided House of Representatives, where the trade bill may have little chance of passage so close to the November presidential and congressional election, according to REUTERS.

"If amendments are added, it could well be dead for this year," warned Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), a leading supporter of the China trade pact. But Lott said he could not rule amendments out. "They should all be offered ... and seriously considered, and we'll see how they turn out," he said, according to REUTERS.