Brazilian soybean exports to China in October rose 71 percent year-on-year, bolstered by cheaper prices after a bumper crop in the South American nation, according to reports.
Last month, China imported 4.81 million metric tons of Brazilian soybeans, which are expected to take over from US soybeans in the final three months of 2023.
Imports from the US, China’s second-largest supplier, shrank by 29.5 percent over the same period last year, down to just 544,523 metric tons.
[See more: China fuels record Brazilian agricultural exports]
Chinese imports of Brazilian soybeans hit a record high in the first six months of 2023, and have continued to hold strong, with the first 10 months seeing a year-on-year increase of 21 percent to 59.68 million tons.
Imports of US soybeans to China, by contrast, had been well below normal for much of the year. An uptick in Chinese purchases in recent weeks lessened the dip to 1.8 percent for the first 10 months of the year.
The rise in soybean exports to China coincides with uneven weather that has marred the start of the soy growing season in Brazil, the world’s largest exporter of the commodity. The El Niño weather phenomenon, worsened by climate change, has hit Brazil particularly hard, causing heatwaves, drought and wildfires in recent months.
