President Donald Trump told reporters on Sunday that his administration is considering importing beef from Argentina to lower its price at home and help Argentina stabilize its struggling economy, which he described as being in critical condition.
Speaking to a reporter from the Associated Press, Trump described beef as the last remaining major good whose price remains unacceptably high and indicated that his administration would focus on lowering that price in the short term.
He rejected concerns that importing beef from Argentina would create unreasonable competition for American cattle ranchers and implications that Argentina was taking advantage of American generosity, describing the country as “fighting for its life” rather than enjoying cushy benefits from America.
“The only price we have that’s high is beef and we’ll get that down,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One. “One of the things that we’re thinking about doing is beef from Argentina.”
Asked to respond to the American beef industry, which may object, Trump said, “Argentina is fighting for its life young lady, you don’t know anything about it, they’re fighting for their life.”
“They have no money, they have no anything, they’re fighting so hard to survive. If I can help them survive in a free world,” Trump continued, adding that he “happen[ed] to like” Argentine President Javier Milei, a right-wing libertarian, and rejecting the idea that Argentina was “doing great.”
“We would buy some beef from Argentina; if we do that that would bring our beef prices down,” he concluded, emphasizing that the imported beef would not be “that much.”
Elsewhere in his comments, Trump observed that popular sentiment throughout South America had shifted rightward in the last decade, highlighting not just Milei’s election as the world’s first libertarian president, but successes for conservatives in countries such as Paraguay and Bolivia.
Beef prices in the United States have become elevated as a result of years of market disruptions, most significantly a sharp decline in the number of beef cattle in the United States. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) documented the lowest inventory point in the country since 1962 in 2023, which experts described as a result of years of agricultural policies that hurt the industry.
“There is a pretty substantial biological lag in the beef supply chain,” University of Kentucky researcher James Mitchell said at the time. “What consumers experience at the grocery store is a product of what cattle producers were going through a year or two ago. It takes about two years for a new calf to become the steak on your dinner plate.”
Prior to his comments on Sunday, President Trump similarly highlighted beef prices as a problem on Friday.
“We are working on beef, and I think we have a deal on beef,” Trump told reporters, adding that the price of the meat was “higher than we want it” but expressing optimism that it would be “coming down pretty soon.”
The U.S. Cattlemen’s Association issued a statement after those remarks explaining that another reason for the increase in beef prices as the increase of the prices of goods necessary to raise the cattle.
“Ranchers are facing historic highs for feed, fuel, labor, and land — and those costs have risen far faster than beef prices on grocery shelves,” Justin Tupper, President of the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association, said. Tupper highlighted that the cattle inventory reached a new, 75-year-low nationwide this year.
Argentina, despite its critical economic state, is a major agricultural power on a world scale and the fifth-largest beef exporter (America is number three). As a result of 20 years of being governed by socialist presidents, the country now relies heavily on China to accept many of its agricultural exports, including beef. Milei campaigned on deviating from this longstanding foreign policy – which brought Argentina into the orbits of China, Russia, and Iran, among other rogue states – and emphasize alliances with America and Israel.
Milei visited the White House last week to conclude negotiations for a $20 million currency swap, greatly expanding Argentina’s supply of U.S. dollars. Milei and Trump have vocally supported each other on the world stage and Milei used the opportunity to gift Trump a framed letter that he, as a head of state, sent to the Norwegian Nobel Committee nominating Trump for the Peace Prize.
Trump expressed interest in helping Milei stabilize the Argentine economy, ravaged by socialism, but suggested that he would not be as eager to do so if Milei and other conservatives lose their political positions to socialists.
“Our approvals are somewhat subject to who wins an election, because if a socialist, or in the case of New York, a communist wins, you feel a lot different making an investment,” he explained.
Argentina’s national bank confirmed the currency swap agreement on Monday.
“The objective of this agreement is to contribute to the macroeconomic stability of Argentina, with a special emphasis on preserving the stability of prices and promoting sustainable economic growth,” the Central Bank of the Argentine Republic (BCRA) said in a statement. “These operations will allow the BCRA to expand its monetary policy toolbox … including the strengthening of the liquidity of its international reserves.”
The currency swap is not a grant or gift to Argentina, nor is it a conventional loan; it will take place for a fixed amount of time, with the goal of strengthening the overall economy.
Prior to Milei’s presidency, predecessor Alberto Fernández attempted similar currency swaps, but with leftist regimes, seeking to expand the use of the Chinese yuan to trade with partner countries.
Milei expressed gratitude during his visit to the White House and emphasized his support for President Trump’s foreign policy, especially when compared to that of predecessor Joe Biden.
“The U.S. had a policy towards this region [Latin America] that neglected its allies and tried to seduce those who were its adversaries,” Milei explained. “With the arrival of [Secretary of State] Marco Rubio, who understands the cultural battle perfectly, knows the case of Cuba, they decided to change their focus and today reward allies.”
“There is a clear international policy from Trump about how he sees the world order,” he continued, “he is willing to lead the region and considers Argentina an ally.”
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