Soybean pain, Xi-Trump talks, ICE death, Hasan Piker: 7 US-China relations reads
From a US influencer’s China controversy to trade war updates, here are highlights from the SCMP’s overseas correspondents in November 2025
1. Bankruptcies, suicides: US farmers detail cost of trade tensions
High fuel costs, rising interest rates, falling crop prices and depressed Chinese demand amid geopolitical tensions had already eroded farm profits during the previous Joe Biden administration. Then came a seismic shift in US politics that brought a tariff-loving president back to the White House, further rattling the industry.
2. Family of Chinese man found dead in ICE facility in US files lawsuit
The brother of a Chinese immigrant who died in US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody in August has filed a lawsuit against the US government, demanding answers and accountability for his sibling’s death.
3. Majority of US Supreme Court justices appear to question Trump’s tariff powers
In a packed marble courtroom, the US Supreme Court heard oral arguments on what could be the most consequential trade ruling in a generation, grilling President Donald Trump’s administration over whether a 48-year-old emergency law effectively gave the White House virtually unlimited power over trade.