China buys hefty amount of foreign grain as global prices slump

China snapped up more than 20 cargoes of feed grain on the international market in the past two weeks as the world’s biggest importer took advantage of a decline in prices to the lowest level in more than three years.

The country secured shipments of corn, sorghum and barley from suppliers including Ukraine and the US, according to people familiar with the transactions. The purchases amount to over 1.2 million tons of grain on the basis of each cargo being 60,000 tons.

The buying spree came as prices climbed in China and benchmark corn futures dropped in Chicago to the lowest level since 2020, weighed down by ample supplies from top exporters Brazil and the US. The widening gap between the local and international markets made the purchases attractive.