Chinese firms have made significant purchases of U.S. soybeans and pork, said Chinese Ministry of Commerce spokesperson Gao Feng on Thursday during a regular briefing, adding that those purchases were exempt from tariffs.

Official sources said Tuesday that China supports relevant enterprises continuing to purchase a certain amounts of U.S. farm products, including soybeans and pork, in line with the rules of the market and the World Trade Organization.

The Customs Tariff Commission of the State Council will continue to exclude the above agricultural products from the additional tariffs on U.S. goods, according to sources with the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Commerce.

This came after the United States recently released three lists exempting additional tariffs on over 400 types of Chinese products.

China has a huge market, and the prospects for importing high-quality U.S. farm products are broad. China hopes the U.S. will continue to meet China halfway and create favorable conditions for bilateral cooperation in agriculture and other sectors, said sources with the relevant departments of China.

(With input from Xinhua News Agency)