In October, China did not import any batches of soybeans from the USA for the second consecutive month. At the same time, the total import volume reached a historical maximum for this month due to a sharp increase in purchases from South America: buyers are trying to secure themselves against supply disruptions amid trade tensions with Washington, Reuters reports.
Data from the General Administration of Customs of China, published on Thursday, showed that American soy imports in October fell to zero (compared to 541,434 tons a year earlier).
This decline followed China's imposition of high tariffs on American soy earlier this year, as well as the depletion of old crop stocks in the USA. China remains the world's largest importer of soybeans.
In the absence of American raw materials, China has turned to alternative suppliers:
Brazil: shipments surged by 28.8% year-on-year, reaching 7.12 million tons. Brazilian soy now accounts for 75.1% of total Chinese imports.
Argentina: shipments increased by 15.4%, totaling 1.57 million tons (one-sixth of the total volume).
Total soybean imports to China in October reached a record 9.48 million tons.