China Buys U.S. Soybeans Ahead of Xi's U.S. Trip

BEIJING — China is sharply increasing purchases of U.S. soybeans ahead of Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to the United States. With the leaders of the two countries set to return to the trade negotiating table late this month, analysts say Beijing is accelerating the expanded farm purchases it promised Washington last year to create a friendlier atmosphere.

Chinese state-owned trading firms ordered at least 1 million additional tons of U.S. soybeans last week, Bloomberg reported on the 15th. That brings China's purchases of U.S. soybeans in the current marketing year to about 13 million tons.

The volume is more than half of the annual purchase target China agreed to with the United States. Under a trade truce signed with Washington last year, China is reported to have committed to buying 25 million tons of U.S. soybeans annually through 2028. Agricultural trade between the two countries came to a virtual halt early in U.S. President Donald Trump's second term, when both sides imposed steep tariffs on each other, and has been recovering since the agreement.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture also said last week that more than 600,000 tons of U.S. soybeans for delivery in the 2026-2027 marketing year had been sold to China. On expectations of further Chinese purchases, soybean futures on the Chicago Board of Trade rose as much as 0.6% before paring some of the gain.

The purchases draw attention because they come ahead of a U.S.-China summit scheduled in the United States late this month. Xi and Trump are set to meet in the United States on the 24th. The two countries remain at odds over trade, advanced technology and Taiwan, and the expanded farm purchases are seen as an effort to set the stage for negotiations.

China has also pledged to buy more U.S. farm goods beyond soybeans. The White House said in May that China would purchase at least $17 billion worth of additional U.S. agricultural products, with the amount for this marketing year to be applied on a pro-rated basis.

Still, analysts said soybean prices can keep climbing only if Chinese buying continues. Joe Davis, head of commodity sales at Futures International, said China must keep buying for the current rally to hold.

Uncertainty over U.S.-China trade relations also persists. With disputes continuing over technological supremacy in artificial intelligence and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, it remains unclear whether the expanded farm purchases will lead to a structural improvement in bilateral ties.

A grain trader based in Singapore told Reuters that the large purchases of U.S. soybeans reflect China's implementation of commitments made in last year's agreement with Washington rather than a simple goodwill gesture.