China steps up purchases of US soybeans ahead of Xi Jinping's expected visit to Washington

China has stepped up purchases of US soybeans ahead of President Xi Jinping's expected visit to Washington next month, with the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) confirming on Monday that Chinese buyers purchased nearly half a million metric tons of US soybeans.

The confirmation follows reports from traders on Friday that Chinese state-owned trading companies bought between 14 and 16 cargoes, totaling roughly one million metric tons.

Reuters reported on Friday, citing US traders familiar with the transactions, that Chinese state buyers had purchased at least eight cargoes of US soybeans for shipment from Gulf Coast export terminals, along with six cargoes from Pacific Northwest ports, with deliveries scheduled for October and November.

Traders said Chinese buyers took advantage of lower soybean prices to secure large purchases ahead of Xi's anticipated visit to the United States.

An Asian trader at an international trading company told Reuters: "These purchases were mainly made by Sinograin. The primary reason was the decline in prices last week. There are plans for President Xi to visit the United States in September, so China is also buying US soybeans as part of its commitments to Washington."

Another market source said buyers paid a premium of $3.03 per bushel above the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) November soybean futures contract for Gulf Coast shipments, while cargoes shipped from Pacific Northwest ports carried a premium of $3.00 per bushel.

The most actively traded soybean futures contract fell 5.2% last week.

China accelerates purchases as markets await possible tariff relief

The White House announced in October that China had agreed to purchase 25 million metric tons of US soybeans annually through the end of 2028.

Before Friday's deals, China had already purchased just over 4 million metric tons of US soybeans this year, marking the fastest pace of new-crop US soybean purchases in four years, according to USDA data.

Neither Sinograin nor state-owned food giant COFCO responded to requests for comment or confirmed the reported purchases.

At the same time, Sinograin sold roughly half of the 504,000 metric tons of imported soybeans it offered at auction on Friday, a move seen as clearing warehouse capacity ahead of the arrival of new US shipments.

US President Donald Trump announced in late July that Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to visit the United States on September 24.

Markets are now watching closely to see whether China will remove tariffs on US soybeans, a move that would allow private soybean crushers to participate more actively in future purchases.

Even so, it remains unclear whether US soybeans will be competitive enough to attract price-sensitive buyers, who continue to focus primarily on securing the lowest-cost supplies.