Before the summit, Chinese enterprises purchased three ships of American soybeans. U.S. Agriculture Secretary: A good beginning

According to Reuters, citing two trade sources, China's state-owned enterprise COFCO purchased three ships of American soybeans, which is the first purchase of this year's American soybean harvest by China, and this purchase coincided with the upcoming Sino-U.S. leaders' summit.

Due to the intense debate between the U.S. and China on trade tariff issues, the reduction in China's purchases has led to billions of dollars in lost sales for American farmers. American farmers had strongly supported Trump during his presidential campaign last year.

Although COFCO ordered about 180,000 metric tons of soybeans from October to January next year, it is the first time that China has purchased American soybeans in several months. However, traders expect that China's demand for American soybeans will not significantly rebound after recent large-scale purchases of South American soybeans. COFCO has not responded to requests for comments yet.

A trade source of an international trading company supplying soybean crushing companies said, "COFCO began purchasing American soybeans even before the trade agreement was reached between the two countries," and added, "The volume of cargo booked by COFCO is not large, currently only three ships."

The usual peak season for American soybean exports usually lasts from October to January of the following year. However, due to ongoing trade frictions with Washington, China did not purchase American soybeans harvested in the autumn this year but turned to South American suppliers instead.

China is the world's largest importer of soybeans, accounting for more than 60% of global soybean imports. Currently, China has basically completed the booking of soybean orders from Brazil and Argentina in November. It is expected that the procurement volume will be relatively limited before the Brazilian soybean harvest in December and January of next year.

Another oilseed trader claimed, "American suppliers have missed most of the oilseed processing business." He expects that China will need about 5 million metric tons of soybeans in December and January of next year, and Brazil's market situation is more favorable to meet this demand.

Traders pointed out that due to weak Chinese demand, the transaction price of American soybeans has been much lower than that of Brazilian soybeans in recent weeks. However, the price has risen this week and is now roughly equal to the Chicago futures price, only about $2.45 per bushel higher than the Chicago futures price.

Traders said that despite this, China may purchase about 8 million metric tons of American soybeans as strategic reserves through state-owned enterprises such as COFCO between December and May of next year. The value of this transaction is expected to be around $4 billion.

U.S. Agriculture Secretary Rollins (Brooke Rollins) posted on social media platform X on Wednesday: "China today purchased multiple ships of American soybeans, demonstrating President Trump's strong negotiating ability and taking a positive step for our farmers."

Rollins continued, "This purchase comes ahead of the summit, indicating that the U.S. is serious. We will restore balance, give American producers the opportunities they deserve, and send a message: when the U.S. leads in agriculture, the whole world will listen. This is a good start, and we will continue to build a system that allows American agriculture to thrive and compete under fair conditions."

Source: rfi

Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1847332473068554/

Statement: This article represents the views of the author himself.