**Talks between the U.S. and China are moving toward a final accord. The latest round of talks going so well both sides are discussing whether to hold more in-person meetings.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin tells agweb.com, they’re getting close to the final round of concluding issues.

A Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesman says both sides will stay in close communication and "spare no efforts" to continue negotiation.

**China would likely lift a ban on U.S. poultry as part of a trade deal and may buy more pork to meet a growing supply deficit, BUT is not willing to allow a prohibited growth drug used in roughly half of U.S. hogs.

Agrimarketing.com reports, the U.S. has asked Beijing to lift its bans on the drug ractopamine.

The Trump Administration is also pushing for greater market access for agricultural products by seeking to reduce tariffs, lift bans and overhaul regulatory processes.

**Cattle inventories jumped between 2012 and 2017 amid increasing global demand for protein.

According to the 2017 Census of Agriculture, cattle and calf inventories totaled 93.6 million in 2017, up from almost 90 million a year earlier. Milk cow inventories were up 3.1% from 2012 to 9.54 million.

Agriculture.com reports, favorable economics and strong demand for both beef and pork domestically and from overseas buyers led to the increase in the size of the cattle and hog herds in recent years.

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