A China imported a record 12.02 million metric tons of soy in May, up 24% year-on-year, customs data showed, as cargoes delayed during recent stringent inspections were finally unloaded at ports.
To the imports from the world’s largest buyer of soy rose sharply compared to the April volume of 7.26 million tons, which had fallen short of expectations.
Harvesting in Brazil, China’s main supplier, has been a bit slower this year, delaying soy cargo arrivals, while tighter customs procedures at Chinese ports significantly slowed imports in April.
MARKET TURNOVER: Your daily program from Monday to Friday, always at noon to bring you all the news that boils in the financial market and the analyzes that drive your investments! Save the link and no miss!
In May, the exports Brazilian soybean sales reached the second highest level in history, according to data from the Foreign Trade Secretariat, which may be reflected in large landings of the oleaginous plant in China next month, considering the time for the cargo to arrive in the Asian country.
Import delays in April resulted in low soybean stocks in China, pushing up the price of soybean meal.
The great arrivals of grains in May, however, they drove prices down, with soybean meal sold at the Rizhao crushing center down nearly 20% in May to RMB 3,670 ($515.53) a tonne.
The previous monthly import record was 11.2 million metric tons in June 2020.
June arrivals could be even higher, at around 13 million tonnes, a Beijing-based soybean trader says.
Chinese crushers bought Brazilian soybeans cheaply at the start of the year, with the large crop putting pressure on futures prices.
Low pork prices in China in recent months are, however, hurting demand for soybean meal, as are large volumes of wheat that are increasingly available to feed manufacturers.
The replacement of wheat by corn in animal feed can reduce the demand for soybean meal, as it has a higher protein content than corn.
Total soybean arrivals in China in the first five months of the year reached 42.31 million metric tons, up 11.2% year-on-year, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.
Source: Moneytimes
I am an author and journalist with a focus on market news. I have worked for a global news website for the past two years, writing articles on a range of topics relating to the stock market. My work has been published in international publications and I have delivered talks at both academic institutions and business conferences around the world.
