China's soybean imports from Brazil fall in June; US shipments gain

China's soybean imports from Brazil in June fell while shipments from the United States increased, customs data showed on Wednesday, as high prices curbed demand for South American cargoes.

China, the world's top soybean buyer, imported 7.24 million tonnes of the oilseed from Brazil in June, down from 10.48 million tonnes a year earlier, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.

Total imports last month dropped 23 per cent from a year before to 8.25 million tonnes, as high global prices and weak demand curbed appetite for the oilseed, customs data showed earlier.

Shipments from the United States in June came in at 773,114 tonnes, up from 54,806 tonnes in the same month last year, according to customs data. Chinese buyers turned to U.S. soybeans for better profits during the peak Brazilian soybean export season, as bad weather pushed up prices of the oilseed in the South American country. For the first six months of the year, China brought in 27.71 million tonnes of Brazilian beans, up from 26.13 million tonnes in the same period of 2021.

Imports from the United States for January to June came in at 17.54 million tonnes, down from 21.57 million tonnes the previous year.

Poor crush margins have been weighing on crushers' appetites for soybeans in recent months. Crushers in the key processing hub of Rizhao are currently losing about 682 yuan from each tonne of soybeans processed.

Demand for soymeal from the feed sector has come under pressure after hog farmers made huge losses earlier this year, while edible oil prices have also slumped.