Brazil, Argentina ship 7 mil mt of soybeans to China for Feb-April

These shipments were loaded from December to January, and most are headed for the ports of Zhoushan and Qingdao in China, according to the data.

Over February-April, China is expected to receive 6.2 million mt of soybeans from Brazil and 752,100 mt from Argentina, CAS data show.

It typically takes about 35 days for a Brazilian soybean cargo to reach China, and 45 days for Argentine cargoes.

“China’s purchases from Brazil have declined over the past few months due to the lean season in Brazil,” an official with a Switzerland-based grain trading firm said.

In 2025, China turned to Brazil to meet its domestic requirements after halting US soybean purchases from June to late October amid a tariff conflict with the US, according to Brazil-based exporters.

Brazil remained China’s dominant supplier in 2025, accounting for 73.6% of its soybean imports, compared with 71% in 2024, data from the General Administration of Customs show.

China accounts for about 60% of global soybean imports, according to the US Department of Agriculture. It resumed US-origin soybean purchases in late October for the 2025-26 marketing year (September-August), following talks between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Oct. 30.

Since Oct. 30, China has booked 10.2 million mt of US soybeans so far in the marketing year, down 50.7% year over year, according to USDA data as of Feb. 12.

Trump said in a Truth Social post Feb. 4 that China will consider purchasing 20 million mt of US-origin soybeans in MY 2025-26. However, market participants have been skeptical about the overall volume of US-China soybean trade.

As of Feb. 18, more than 50 cargoes totaling 4 million mt of US-origin soybeans were en route to Chinese ports, including Zhoushan and Guangzhou, and were expected to arrive between February and April, CAS data show.