The US is mounting pressure on China after filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) over subsidies provided to wheat, corn, and rice farmers.

The case comes at a time when the US is becoming increasing hostile towards China. Washington recently introduced high anti-dumping tariffs on steel imports from China. The latest complaint is the 14^th case filed by the Obama administration against China.

Like Us on Facebook

The Obama administration has cited China's "excessive government support" to local agricultural producers as a cause of concern. The US claims that such support goes against the interest of American farmers. The case claims that China surpassed its permissible subsidy limits on wheat, rice and corn by $100 billion in 2015.

The US Department of Agriculture claims that Chinese policies have "resulted in significant losses to American producers." CNBC reported that China is one of the most prominent importers of American soybeans. The USDA expects the US' total agricultural exports to China to touch $21.5 billion figure in 2017, up by $3.5 billion from 2016.

According to FT, the US government is using the ploy to further its Pacific Rim trade deal. The Obama administration signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership with 11 countries including Japan earlier this year. The US president is now looking to get Congress to approve the trade deal. However, it faces strong opposition from the two major Presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump.

The US is the largest agricultural exporter in the world. 

TagsWTO, President Obama, subsidies, agriculture