April 12, 2017

China still No. 1 buyer of Russian soybeans

China remains as the top buyer of Russian soybeans, UkrAgroConsult said, adding that in February Russian soybean exports totalled 41,200 tonnes, a slight decrease from January's 41,500 tonnes and substantially lower than February 2016's 65,300 tonnes.

Altogether, 188,900 tonnes of soybeans were shipped abroad in September-February 2016/17, or 31% less than in the same period in 2015/16.

As before, soybean exports are curbed by strong domestic demand for oilseed products, UkrAgroConsult noted.

It further noted that Russia's export market features poor diversification, with the range of export destinations limited to just eight countries. In September-February 2016/17, 88% of total soybean exports were absorbed by the traditional destination countries: China (88% of total exports), the US (5%) and Iran (5%).

"China is still the top buyer of Russian soybeans", UkrAgroConsult said.