China March soybean import at 7-year low, crush down 6% on year

China’s total soybean imports in March 2020 dropped 13% year-on-year to the lowest level for the month since 2013, data from the Chinese government showed Tuesday. 

The fall reflected a 6% contraction in the soybean crush during the month as factories closed in the face of Covid-19 containment measures.

Total soybean imports by the world’s largest soybean buyer fell to 4.28 million mt in March 2020, down 13% from the same month of 2019 and nearly a third lower versus the February 2020 volume, the latest data from China’s General Administration of Customs (GACC) showed.

However, the figure fell within the expectations of analysts who had been looking for between 4.2 million mt and 4.5 million mt.

GACC data showed that the March import volume was the lowest on record for the month of March over the past seven years, and was the lowest recorded volume for any month since February 2015, during which China imported an average of 7.33 million mt.

Soybean vessel landings during March 2020 have been slower than usual due to the adverse impact from the Covid-19 pandemic, forcing crushers in various regions in China to halt operations on a lack of soybean supplies.

China crushed a total of 6 million mt in March this year, down nearly 6% from the same month last year, according to data from China’s National Grain and Oil Information Centre (CNGOIC).