Key facts
- Tyler Stafslien runs a 2,500-acre farm in central North Dakota that his family has owned since 1912.
- The report said a sharp drop in Chinese demand left a gap that temporary trade truces cannot easily plug.
- The report linked higher input prices and weaker Chinese demand to pressure on soybean growers ahead of midterms.
US soybean growers faced a sharp drop in Chinese demand and higher input costs, a squeeze that temporary trade truces could not easily resolve, Nikkei reported on November 2, 2026. The report said the pressure was building ahead of midterm elections.
For Tyler Stafslien, a fourth-generation farmer in central North Dakota, running the 2,500-acre property his family has owned since 1912 felt increasingly like a rescue mission, according to the report. The report did not give further figures on the scale of lost Chinese sales or the size of the cost increase.