China resumes US soybean imports after a year of trade tensions. What the data show

China resumed imports of US soybeans in September after recording no shipments from the world’s largest economy a year earlier. The return of US cargoes reflects the arrival of supplies purchased under a trade deal aimed at easing tensions between Beijing and Washington.

China imported 360,878 metric tonnes of US soybeans in September, compared with zero in the same month last year, according to data released by China’s General Administration of Customs on Tuesday.

Brazil continues to dominate supplies, while China’s total soybean imports fell in September from a year earlier.

China imported 11.88 million tonnes of soybeans in September, down 7.7 per cent from the same month last year. Imports from Brazil, its largest supplier, fell 2.4 per cent to 10.7 million tonnes from 10.96 million tonnes a year earlier.

How the US-China trade deal changed soybean flows

Trade tensions between Beijing and Washington last year led Chinese buyers to delay purchases of the previous US soybean harvest. Buyers waited until after an October meeting between the two countries’ leaders before resuming purchases.

Following the meeting, China bought around 12 million tonnes of US soybeans, meeting a target linked to the trade truce. However, the volume remained below levels seen before the trade war.

Shipments under the latest round of purchases began arriving in September. Traders told Reuters last week that China had also purchased more than 60 per cent of its 25-million-tonne US soybean buying target for the 2026-27 marketing year.

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Brazil remains China’s main soybean supplier

The longer-term figures underline the gap between the two suppliers. From January to September, China imported 11.06 million tonnes of soybeans from the US, down 34 per cent from the same period a year earlier.

Over the same period, imports from Brazil rose 3.4 per cent to 65.84 million tonnes.

The figures show that the return of US shipments has yet to reverse the shift towards Brazilian supplies. Brazil continues to account for a much larger share of China’s soybean imports, even as trade negotiations reopen opportunities for American exporters.

For the US, the recovery in shipments is an important sign that the trade truce is translating into purchases. For China, the data point to a gradual return of American supplies without a major change in its reliance on Brazil.