China: USDA in Beijing maintains soybean import projection for 2025/26

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) office in Beijing maintained its estimate for Chinese soybean imports at 106 million tons for the 2025/26 crop year. The volume is 1 million tons lower than the estimate for 2024/25, which was 107 million tons. "The relatively stable forecast for soybean imports is linked to the contained growth in crushing demand and Beijing's ongoing efforts to limit the growth of imports," said the USDA in a report. The USDA in Beijing noted that China has not yet purchased soybeans from the 2025/26 crop year from the United States, due to trade tensions between the two countries. The office also highlighted that between June and August, Brazil exported more than 10 million tons of soybeans per month to the Asian country. "In recent weeks, as the Brazilian supply began to become more restricted and prices increased, China booked additional shipments from Argentina and Uruguay to compensate for the lack of its normal seasonal soybean purchases ...