# China steps up US soybean purchases as trade talks drag on

> CNBC reports Chinese imports of U.S. soybeans between September and November rose 13 times from a year earlier. All Chinese purchases this year came through special arrangements that avoided retaliatory tariffs of about 30%. U.S. soybean exports to China had dropped sharply in late 2018 after Beijing's retaliation.

- Date: 2019-12-10 · published 2019-12-10T12:00:00.000Z
- Category: trade · region China · magnitude medium
- Page: https://feedsoft.ai/events/55447-china-steps-up-us-soybean-purchases-as-trade-talks-drag-on
- Commodities: [Soybeans](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SOY.md), [Soybean Meal](https://feedsoft.ai/c/SBM.md)

## Why it matters

Surging purchases via tariff-avoiding channels show demand returning to U.S. soybeans, supporting prices while the arrangements last.

## Read by commodity

- SBM: bullish ▲
- SOY: bullish ▲

## Similar past events

| Commodity | Date | Event | 5-day % | 20-day % |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| SOY | 2019-09-12 | [Ahead of trade talks, China makes biggest US soybean purchases since June, traders say](https://feedsoft.ai/events/9439-ahead-of-trade-talks-china-makes-biggest-us-soybean-purchases-since-june.md) | +4.1% | +8.2% |
| SOY | 2020-05-12 | [China Steps Up US Soybean Buying With Million-Ton Purchase - TT](https://feedsoft.ai/events/52986-china-steps-up-us-soybean-buying-with-million-ton-purchase-tt.md) | -0.9% | +1.3% |
| SOY | 2019-09-13 | [China's soybean purchase keeps rally alive](https://feedsoft.ai/events/10854-china-s-soybean-purchase-keeps-rally-alive.md) | +1.1% | +4.6% |
| SOY | 2025-10-01 | [Trump’s Signal on China Trade Talks Lifts Soybean Prices - Bloomberg](https://feedsoft.ai/events/22453-trump-s-signal-on-china-trade-talks-lifts-soybean-prices-bloomberg.md) | +2.0% | +7.6% |
| SOY | 2025-10-29 | [Australian Dollar gains ground as China’s COFCO purchases US soybean cargoes](https://feedsoft.ai/events/22667-australian-dollar-gains-ground-as-china-s-cofco-purchases-us-soybean-cargoes.md) | +2.8% | +4.3% |
| SBM | 2026-08-03 | [EXCLUSIVE: Chinese state traders make large US soybean purchases \| Reuters](https://feedsoft.ai/events/14553-exclusive-chinese-state-traders-make-large-us-soybean-purchases-reuters.md) | -0.8% | +8.2% |
| SBM | 2020-09-24 | [US soybean demand firm on Chinese state-owned companies' purchases: sources](https://feedsoft.ai/events/50986-us-soybean-demand-firm-on-chinese-state-owned-companies-purchases-sources.md) | -0.7% | +10.7% |
| SBM | 2025-11-17 | [Soybean Futures Rebound on Signs China Is Ramping Up Purchases - Bloomberg](https://feedsoft.ai/events/7887-soybean-futures-rebound-on-signs-china-is-ramping-up-purchases-bloomberg.md) | -1.7% | -5.9% |

## Sources

- cnbc.com: https://www.cnbc.com/2019/12/10/china-steps-up-us-soybean-purchases-as-trade-talks-drag-on.html

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Data from Feedsoft AI (https://feedsoft.ai/). For information only; not investment advice.