China’s soybean imports hit highest November since 2021
Record 2025 purchases expected as buyers tap Brazil and US
8 December 2025
1 minute read
By: China's soybean imports reached their highest November level since 2021, a Reuters calculation based on customs data showed on Monday, with full-year arrivals set for a record amid strong purchases from South America and a US trade truce.
The world's top soybean buyer brought in 8.11 million metric tons in November, the General Administration of Customs said, up 13.4% from 7.15 million tons a year earlier.
In the first 11 months of the year, China's soybean imports rose 6.9% from a year earlier to 103.79 million tons, the customs data showed. November shipments were down 14.5% from October.
"November soybean imports came in slightly below our expectations," said Rosa Wang, an analyst at Shanghai-based agro-consultancy JCI.
"Looking ahead to (full year) 2025, we expect China's soybean imports to reach a record high - potentially exceeding 110 million tons - driven by strong commercial buying from Brazil as well as arrivals of US soybeans."
China's soybean imports have set records from May through October of this year, as buyers sharply boosted South American purchases, fearing a shortfall if the trade war with Washington continued, which later contributed to oversupply.
"Soybean and soybean-meal inventories at domestic crushers are currently high, adding selling pressure," said Wang Wenshen, an analyst at Sublime China Information.
Wang estimated December imports could reach 8.6 million tons, bringing full-year imports to a record high of around 112 million metric tons.
China, which had largely shunned US soybeans for months amid a tense Washington-Beijing trade standoff, has stepped up purchases recently following late-October talks between the two countries' leaders in South Korea.
State-run grain buyer COFCO has led the buying, booking around 2.7 million tons of US soybeans since late October, according to US Department of Agriculture data.
The recent deals remain well below the White House's year-end target of 12 million tons, but US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent last week appeared to push the deadline to the end of February.
China has yet to officially confirm the volume or schedule.
