BEIJING: China’s soybean imports from the United States rose 70% in August from a year earlier, customs data showed on Friday, as buyers took advantage of low soybean prices.

from the US, its second-biggest supplier, have gained pace since April, though volume remains much smaller than top producer Brazil.

China imported 202,383 metric tons of the oilseed from the US last month compared with 119,105 tons a year earlier, showed data from the General Administration of Customs.

Imports from Brazil rose 12% to 10.24 million tons.

Soybeans fall as Brazil drought concerns ease

The world’s biggest soybean buyer brought in a record 12.14 million tons of soybeans in August amid concern that trade tension with the US could intensify and hurt soybean trade if Republican candidate Donald Trump returned as president following a November election.

The large arrivals further swelled China’s soybean surplus as consumption of meat and dairy weakens in a struggling economy.

Soybean is crushed into meal for animal feed and oil for cooking.

Soybean imports from Brazil for January-August totalled 53.8 million tons, a 217% increase from the same period last year.

Arrivals from the US for the same period came to 12.8 million tons, down 73% on the prior year, the data showed.