China triples US soybean imports in July, customs data shows

By Mei Mei Chu BEIJING (Reuters) - China's imports of U.S. soybeans tripled in July from a year earlier as the U.S. growing season resumed, but Brazilian supplies still hold the lion's share of the market, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Tuesday. The world's biggest soybean buyer imported 475,392 tonnes of the oilseed from the United States last month, compared with 142,129 tonnes a year earlier, the data showed. Imports from Brazil, the top producer of the commodity, fell 1.15% to 9.12 million tonnes. South American beans accounted for almost all of the 9.85 million tonnes of soybeans China imported in July. From January to July, China's purchases of Brazilian soybeans totaled 43.55 million tonnes, up 12% from the same period last year. Total U.S. arrivals in the first seven months of the year were 12.63 million tonnes, down 25% from a year earlier, the data showed. China’s crushers have stepped up purchases in recent months after lower global prices ...