China will raise soybean imports

CHINA, the world's biggest soybean buyer, will increase imports of the oilseed and account for more than half of global purchases within 10 years, a European Union forecast said.

Greater income will boost consumption of agricultural commodities in China, and the country's imports of soybeans will represent 57 percent of the world total, from 44 percent in 2006, the EU Directorate-General for Agricultural and Rural Development said yesterday on its Website. Rising imports of soybeans into China, worth US$11.5 billion last year, will benefit the United States, Brazil and Argentina, the top three sellers to the Asian nation.