February 24, 2004

China Received 16 Cargoes Of Imported Soybeans In February

China received 16 cargoes of imported soybeans in the first 20 days of February, a trader who tracks soybean shipments said Tuesday.
 
"Sixteen cargoes, or around 920,000 metric tons, of imported soybeans arrived between Feb. 1 and 20, fewer than the arrivals of January," said the trader from a Hong Kong-based oilseeds company.
 
Arrivals in the Feb 11-20 period were roughly the same as arrivals in the first 10 days, he said.
 
For the rest of February, China is expected to receive another six cargoes of imported soybeans, the trader said.
 
"In February, China is expected to receive 1.2 million to 1.3 million tons of soybeans," he said. In January, China imported 1.98 million tons of soybeans, up 53% from imports in January 2003, according to official customs data.
 
In 2003, China imported 20.74 million tons of soybeans, 83% more than imports in 2002.