For soybeans
China investigates tariffs against US
China is studying the possibility of imposing an import duty on soya from the United States (US). This is in response to the tariffs imposed by the US on solar panels and washing machines from China last month.
Since January, the Chinese Ministry of Commerce has been investigating the impact an import tax could have against the US. This would mainly concern anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures. This is causing tensions between the world's largest economies to rise, with commodities at the forefront. China has already imposed tariffs on sorghum, but the impact of a tariff on soy would be much greater.
China's largest soybean customer
The impact of such an import tax can be significant, because China is by far the largest soy importer. The country imported 97 million tons of soy. That this is a lot is apparent from the 14 million tons that the European Union (EU) imports. China's soybean imports have grown to a record, as there are large scale increases of livestock farming in the country.
The Chicago stock exchange (CBoT) showed little change in the price of soybeans. After a small drop on Wednesday 7 February, the price rose again on Friday 9 February to €362 per tonne.
The soybean price rose to €362 per tonne.
Anne-Jan Doorn
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