China will allow the imports of Brazilian corn this month, dealing a further blow to US after China rejected shipments over unapproved GMO strains in US corn, reported the Wall Street Journal.

China's General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine signed the agreement with Brazil on March 31, and officially announced it on April 8.

China inked similar deals with Argentina in February 2012 and Ukraine in November the same year. The latest deal with Brazil symbolises China's effort to broaden its corn supply and reduce its dependence on the US.

From 2009 to 2013, China's demand for corn rose 39-fold in volume, with imports accounting for only about 2% of the country's total corn consumption. However, with increasing demand from livestock and food-processing industries, the Chinese government is wary about the specter of a corn-supply deficit the country might face in coming years.

Brazil is the world's second-largest corn exporter after the US, while another South American country Argentina is the third-largest exporter.