China Drastically Decreasing U.S. Soybean Imports

China dropped imports of U.S. soybeans by 80 percent in September and increased Brazilian imports by 28 percent. Reuters reports this is the first time that China has provided data on the country of origin for its commodity imports since the month of March. China, which typically buys many of its soybeans during the fourth quarter from the U.S., is sourcing soybeans from Brazil as a direct result of the trade war with the United States. Chinese buyers imported 7.59 million metric tons of Brazilian soybeans in September, up from 5.94 million metric tons a year ago. Soybean imports from the U.S. were 132,200 metric tons, compared with 937,000 in September last year. China implemented a 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans in July as part of the tit-for-tat tariffs between the two countries. Corn and sorghum shipments from the U.S. were reported significantly lower, as well.