World Grain - July 2019 - 16

COUNTRY FOCUS

FOCUS ON

UNITED
STATES

World's largest grain producer and
exporter locked in trade war with China
by Chris Lyddon

The United States is the world's largest grain producer and exporter and its biggest ethanol producer. Recent trade disagreements, however, have complicated life for U.S. exporters, parWLFXODUO\RIVR\EHDQVDVWKH86DQG&KLQHVHJRYHUQPHQWV¿JKW
over issues that go much wider than agricultural trade.
In its May 30 Grain Market Report, the International Grains
Council (IGC), forecast total U.S. grains production in 2019-20
at 426.2 million tonnes, down from the prediction it made earlier
this year of 434.8 million and compared with 431.6 million in
2018-19.
The IGC now puts U.S. wheat output in 2019-20 at 50.3 million tonnes, a forecast unchanged from a month earlier and down
from 51.3 million in the previous year.
U.S. corn production is now forecast at 362.4 million tonnes in
2019-20, down from the 371.2 million predicted a month earlier.
The previous year's crop was 366.3 million tonnes.
Barley production in the United States in 2019-20 is forecast at
PLOOLRQWRQQHVD¿JXUHXQFKDQJHGIURPWKHSUHYLRXVPRQWK¶V
forecast. The 2018-19 crop was 3.3 million tonnes.
Production of sorghum is put at 8.5 million
tonnes, a forecast unchanged from the
month before, down from 9.3 million
in 2018-19.
Total U.S. grain exports in
2019-20 are forecast at 84.8
million tonnes, down from
WKH ¿JXUH RI PLOOLRQ WKH
IGC predicted a month earlier and also down from the
previous year's 90.2 million
tonnes.
U.S. wheat exports are
forecast at 26 million tonnes
in 2019-20, a downward reYLVLRQ IURP WKH ¿JXUH RI
million tonnes arrived at a month
earlier, and also down from the 26.5
million tonnes exported in 2018-19.
16

KEY FACTS
Capital: Washington, D.C.
Population: 329,256,465 (July 2018 est.)
Religions: Protestant 46.5%, Roman Catholic
20.8%, Jewish 1.9%, Mormon 1.6%, other Christian
0.9%, Muslim 0.9%, Jehovah's Witness 0.8%, Buddhist 0.7%, Hindu 0.7%, other 1.8%, unaffiliated
22.8%, don't know/refused 0.6% (2014 est.).
Location: North America, bordering both the North
Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean, between
Canada and Mexico.
Government: Constitutional federal republic. Chief
of state and head of government: Donald J. Trump
(since Jan. 20, 2017).
Economy: The United States has the most technologically powerful economy in the world, with a per
capita GDP of $59,500. U.S. firms are at or near the
forefront in technological advances, especially in computers, pharmaceuticals, and medical, aerospace, and
military equipment; however, their advantage has narrowed since the end of World War II. Based on a comparison of GDP measured at purchasing power parity
conversion rates, the U.S. economy in 2014, having
stood as the largest in the world for more than a century, slipped into second place behind China, which
has more than tripled the U.S. growth rate for each
year of the past four decades. In the United States,
private individuals and business firms make most of
the decisions, and the federal and state governments
buy needed goods and services predominantly in the
private marketplace. U.S. business firms enjoy greater
flexibility than their counterparts in Western Europe
and Japan in decisions to expand capital plant, to lay
off surplus workers, and to develop new products. At
the same time, businesses face higher barriers to enter their rivals' home markets than foreign firms face
entering U.S. markets. Long-term problems for the
United States include stagnation of wages for lowerincome families, inadequate investment in deteriorating infrastructure, rapidly rising medical and pension
costs of an aging population, energy shortages, and
sizable current account and budget deficits.
GDP per capita: $59,800 (2017 est.); inflation:
2.1% (2017 est.); unemployment: 4.4% (2017 est.).
Currency: U.S. dollar
Exports: $1.553 trillion (2017 est.): agricultural
products (soybeans, fruit, corn) 9.2%, industrial supplies (organic chemicals) 26.8%, capital goods (transistors, aircraft, motor vehicle parts, computers, telecommunications equipment) 49.0%, consumer goods
(automobiles, medicines) 15.0% (2008 est.).
Imports: $2.361 trillion (2017 est.): agricultural
products 4.9%, industrial supplies 32.9% (crude oil
8.2%), capital goods 30.4% (computers, telecommunications equipment, motor vehicle parts, office machines, electric power machinery), consumer goods
31.8% (automobiles, clothing, medicines, furniture,
toys) (2008 est.).
Major crops/agricultural products: Wheat, corn,
other grains, fruits, vegetables, cotton; beef, pork,
poultry, dairy products; fish; forest products.
Agriculture: 0.9% (2017 est.) of GDP and 0.7%
(2009) of the labor force.
Internet: Code: .us; 246,809,221 (July 2016 est.)
users.
Source: CIA Factbook

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