China expected to ramp up soybean imports from Brazil, reduce US reliance amid trade war

China is expected to deepen economic ties with South American nations as it increases agricultural imports from the region and reduces reliance on the United States amid the trade war – a strategic move ahead of the China-Latin America ministerial gathering, analysts said.

The world’s second-largest economy reinstated the registration of five Brazilian soybean exporters last week, allowing them to resume shipments to the mainland, according to Chinese customs authorities.

In January, China suspended export qualifications for several firms from Brazil after repeatedly detecting soybeans coated in pesticide, according to the customs statement. Three of the companies accounted for roughly one-third of Brazil’s total soybean exports to China in 2024.

Amid escalating trade tensions with the United States under President Donald Trump, Beijing has looked to expand its import sources and strengthen economic ties with Latin American countries.

“China has been actively diversifying its soybean imports, taking more from countries such as Brazil, which has surpassed the US to become China’s top soybean supplier in recent years,” Barclay Bank economists said in a report on the country’s latest import activities.

“In addition, we think China may accelerate its shift to other exporters of agricultural products like Brazil, Argentina and Australia.”