Soybeans from last year’s crop are loaded into a truck on April 6 at Doug Bartek’s farm near Wahoo, Neb. (Charlie Riddell/AP)
key takeaways:
- China increased purchases of US soybeans with COFCO booking at least six cargoes for September-October following the summit in May between President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping.
- The purchases support a pledged agriculture deal that includes at least $17 billion worth of products and 25 million tons of soybeans annually, though Beijing has not confirmed the U.S. figures.
- Markets and policymakers are now looking ahead to further trade talks and a possible Trump-Xi meeting in September as farmers await additional Chinese demand amid weakening sentiment.
China has bought more soybeans from the United States, according to people familiar with the matter, as key agricultural trade trade picks up following a summit between the two countries’ leaders in May.
State-owned COFCO has booked at least six cargoes of U.S. soybeans for loading between September and October, said the people, who asked not to be named because they were not authorized to speak to the media. The U.S. Agriculture Department said last month that Chinese buyers have already committed to buying 200,000 tons of American beans.
Read more: EU aims to cut dependence on US soya, oilseed imports
COFCO Group did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The USDA also did not confirm any new exports, although the agency reported sales of 105,000 tons of U.S. soybean meal to Colombia.
The White House said China has agreed to buy at least 25 million tons of soybeans and agricultural products worth at least $17 billion every year through 2028 following a summit between President Donald Trump and his counterpart Xi Jinping. Beijing has not confirmed any of the figures reported by the US.
Soybean futures in Chicago climbed to $11.98 a bushel, the highest intraday level in more than a month, before falling slightly. Soybeans rose 3.9% on July 6, the biggest gain since June 2023.
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Earlier this year, China fulfilled a previous pledge to buy 12 million tonnes of US soybeans after it halted purchases for most of the season as Asian countries sought a bargain during tariff talks.
China’s commerce ministry said last week that Beijing and Washington were seeking to roll back tariffs on some agricultural products after recent talks as they seek to maintain a sweeping trade truce reached last year. Trump recently said he hoped to meet President Xi again in September.
As U.S. farmers await more sales to China, with complaints of higher costs, sentiment among producers fell for the third consecutive month, according to a June survey from Purdue University and CME Group released July 7.
