AGRICULTURE

2,000 Pounds of U.S. Apples Reach China: The consignment of Red Delicious arrived by air this month and is the first U.S. fruit to officially be sold in China in commercial quantities, officials said. A second 18,000-pound consignment is due to arrive Friday. The apples represent a victory for U.S. negotiators urging China, which has a $23-billion trade surplus with the United States, to open its markets. It took two years of discussions before Chinese quarantine officials would allow the apples to be imported, the growers said. Washington apple growers say they hope to sell 20 million pounds of the fruit to China in the next 12 months, and U.S. officials hope grapes, tobacco and other agricultural products will follow.