United States President Donald Trump announced new measures to support U.S. farmers.
This comes as farmers have been left reeling from the administration’s trade policies and the Iran war.
One of the measures suggested by Trump was that farm equipment makers cut prices.
"I want John Deere and Case and all of - they're great companies, Caterpillar... I want these companies to give it to you in the form of lower tractor and equipment costs," Trump said.
This sent companies' stocks tumbling.
At the time of writing, Deere & Co (DE: NYSE) stock was down 2.50% to US$566.64.
Caterpillar (CAT: NYSE) stock is also down 1.11% to $695.40.
Trump called for lower prices in an aside during a speech that otherwise focused on shoring up support among the Republican president's loyal constituency of rural voters, who have backed Trump in all three of the last presidential races.
U.S. crop producers are facing tight margins, high production costs and low commodity prices for the fourth straight year, despite near-record government payments.
The Trump administration has promised to distribute $12 billion in aid to U.S. farmers.
This is a move that farm trade groups and agricultural economists have said is helpful in the short term, but does not fully compensate farmers for financial losses that have surpassed $30 billion in recent years.
Trump also said the U.S. Small Business Administration would open up new loan guarantees for farmers and food suppliers.
