China's December soy imports seen at 2.95 million tonnes

China's Commerce Ministry has revised slightly upwards its estimate for the country's November soy imports to 2.86 million tonnes while December's imports are set at 2.95 million tonnes.

Both figures were higher than October imports of 2.52 million tonnes but they were lower than traders' projections of between 3 million tonnes to 3.5 million tonnes for November and four million tonnes for December.

Chinese buyers have booked a large volume of US soy cargoes but some shipments slated for this month were delayed as wet weather conditions in the US had delayed the harvesting and the loading of cargoes.

Meanwhile, China's low soy imports in October have driven up domestic soymeal prices to the highest level in the year.

The ministry's forecast, based on reports from buyers, fails to catch all shipments, but it provides a reference for buyers to gauge supply.