China Ramps Up Buying of US Soybeans After Brief Pause in Trade

(Bloomberg) — China has bought nearly a million tons of US soybeans, a move that ends a temporary pause and appears to signal commitment to a trade truce agreed late last month.

State-owned agriculture trader Cofco Group booked nearly 20 cargoes of the American oilseed on Monday for delivery in December and January, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified because they’re not authorized to speak to media. The shipments were from Pacific northwest ports and Gulf coast terminals in the US, they said.

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The purchases have reignited market optimism around the soybean trade between the two agricultural powerhouses, which was worth more than $12 billion last year and will underpin any trade agreement.

Chicago soybeans rallied as much as 3.2% on Monday after the news, reported earlier by brokerage AgResource Co, though prices pared gains during Asian hours on Tuesday.

Cofco did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Beijing’s latest purchases still leave plenty to be done in the coming months, however, at a time when stockpiles are plentiful. Washington has said Beijing pledged to buy 12 million tons of US soybeans by end of this year, followed by 25 million tons annually over the next three years.

While China has yet to confirm the specific purchase commitments, it has moved to reduce tariffs on the crop and lifted import bans on three American exporters, including CHS Inc., reciprocating similar conciliatory actions from the US.

President Donald Trump has reiterated Washington’s belief that more cargoes will be booked in the coming weeks.

“They’ll be doing a lot of soybean purchases,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One last week, adding that they could start before spring.

(Updates with details, context in sixth paragraph.)

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