(Aug 10): China ordered steep anti-dumping deposits on pecan imports from the US and Mexico, adding another source of trade friction weeks before an expected summit between President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

The Commerce Ministry said Monday pecans from both countries were being sold in China at unfairly low prices, citing the provisional result of an investigation. Starting Tuesday, importers of US pecans are required to pay a deposit rate of 54.3%, while those buying from Mexico face rates ranging from 17.8% to 51.6%.

The decision comes as Washington and Beijing seek to keep preparations on track for Xi’s planned visit to the US in September, even as a renewed exchange of trade and technology restrictions strains their fragile truce. China last week announced a barrage of countermeasures including sanctions on US entities and tighter controls on drone-related exports.

China’s imports of US pecans plummeted after a spike in 2024, amounting to just US$6.9 million (RM28.23 million) in the first four months of this year, compared with US$77.2 million two years ago. Instead, it has boosted its purchase from South Africa in recent years, Chinese customs data show.

In a separate statement, the ministry said no US company participated in the probe, prompting authorities to apply the 54.3% rate on all American supplies.

“China has consistently exercised prudence and restraint in its use of trade-remedy measures,” the ministry added, pledging to protect the rights of interested parties before issuing a final ruling.

The investigation was launched last September under China’s Anti-Dumping Regulations. American pecans were already hit by 10% tariffs in March 2025, as China retaliated against Trump’s levies.

Pecans were previously caught in the trade war during the first Trump administration, when China hit back against American pecans with 47% tariffs that left farmers in Georgia and Arizona without a key export market.

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