US to Temporarily Lower Beef Import Tariffs, WSJ Says

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The Trump administration is planning to temporarily reduce tariffs on beef imports as soon as Monday as it tries to bring down high beef prices, according to the Wall Street Journal.

The move would suspend the annual tariff-rate quota, which applies a higher rate after a certain level of beef imports are reached, on all beef-exporting nations, according to the report, which cited people familiar with the matter. That would enable more of the product to enter the US at low rates.

The US cattle herd has shrunk to a 75-year low, sending consumer prices to record highs while also tightening margins for meat processors. The cost of beef has been one of the key drivers of food inflation, making it a political flashpoint for the Trump administration ahead of the midterm elections.

The US is already poised to import a record amount of beef this year, according to the US Department of Agriculture. Those supplies in the first quarter of the year have come largely from Brazil, Australia and Canada, according to USDA data. Brazil, the world’s top beef exporter, in particular is poised to ship more to the US as its usual buyer, China, has imposed quotas.

The expected move is the latest in a series of attempts from Washington to lower beef prices. Trump had already increased Argentina’s quota for beef shipments. He has blamed meatpackers, particularly foreign-owned ones, for the increase, and the Justice Department is currently investigating the industry for antitrust behavior, even as processors have been losing money in the current market.

Shares of Brazilian meatpacker Minerva SA jumped nearly 3% on the news, and US shares of JBS NV briefly erased losses before resuming declines. Arkansas-based Tyson Foods Inc., the US’s largest meatpacker, fell as much as 4.7%.

The Trump administration also plans to direct the Small Business Administration to increase loans for US ranchers, while reducing some laws surrounding protections for endangered wolves and ear tag requirements, the Journal reported. The USDA last fall also announced a plan meant to loosen regulations, including on grazing access, to boost supplies.

(Updates with more background, meatpacker share moves.)

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