China has bought around 1 million metric tons of US soybeans this week, reports Reuters. This comes as the world’s top oilseed buyer steps up purchases ahead of ​Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to Washington later this month.

The purchases ​take China’s total US soybean buying to nearly half of the ⁠25 million tons the White House said Beijing had committed to annually through ​2028.

While China’s purchases of U.S. soybeans could help bolster trade and diplomatic ties with ​Washington, the buying also coincides with tightening global oilseed supplies amid dwindling inventories in top exporter Brazil. 

China’s state stockpiler Sinograin bought 10 US soybean cargoes this week, reports Reuters citing inside sources. The world’s top buyer is continuing to purchase from the United States following a late October trade truce.

The cargoes, totalling around 600,000 metric tons, are for shipment between March and May, the traders said, which is the peak shipping season for rival supplier Brazil.

China’s total purchases from the latest US crop were now estimated at 8.5 million to nearly 10 million tons, according to traders and analysts, representing up to 80% of the 12 million metric tons that US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said China pledged to buy by the end of February.

China has sharply reduced tariffs on European Union pork imports worth over $2 billion, reports Reuters. This is the final ruling of an anti-dumping investigation regarded to be a response to the bloc’s duties on Chinese electric vehicles.

China will impose tariffs of between 4.9% and 19.8% on pork imports from the EU for a five-year period starting on December 17, well below the 15.6%-62.4% imposed in a preliminary decision in September, China’s Ministry of Commerce said in a statement.

Importers will receive a refund on the difference between the rates paid since September.

The decision is a partial reprieve for European producers who depend heavily on the Chinese market, especially for the offal rarely eaten elsewhere.

China on Thursday approved additional varieties of genetically modified soybeans and corn for import and production while expanding their planting areas nationwide, as part of a drive to improve food security and reduce imports, reports Reuters. The agriculture ministry approved the domestic production of six more varieties of genetically modified corn, two of soybeans and one of cotton, and another two of gene-edited soybeans, a notice on the ministry’s website said.

The planting zones for most of the varieties were expanded from “ecologically suitable” areas to the whole country, according to the notice. Previously, some corn varieties were restricted to the Northern or Southern producing areas.

For imports, the ministry approved gene-modified insect- and herbicide-resistant soybean variety, DBN8002, developed by Beijing Dabeinong Technology Group, which had been licensed for planting in Argentina since 2022.

Brazil’s beef exports to China will be halted starting Thursday after a case of mad cow disease was confirmed in the northern state of Para, the country’s agriculture and livestock ministry said on Wednesday, reports Reuters. The suspension is part of an animal health pact previously agreed between China and Brazil and is expected to be temporary. It is a blow to Brazilian farmers, as China is the main destination for Brazil’s beef exports.

“All measures are being taken immediately at each stage of the investigation and the matter is being handled with total transparency to guarantee Brazilian and global consumers the recognized quality of our meat,” said Minister Carlos Favaro.

A case of the disease, formally called bovine spongiform encephalitis, was confirmed earlier by Para’s agricultural defense agency.