China’s LNG imports hit record levels, November soybean arrivals tumble to zero amid US trade war

China’s liquefied natural gas imports from the United States hit record levels in November, up 48.5 per cent from the same month last year, customs data showed on Monday.

The mainland imported a total of 138,892 tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in November, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Sunday.

But China’s soybean imports in November from the United States, its second-largest supplier, tumbled to zero from a year ago.

Shipments from Brazil last month, though, nearly doubled from a year ago, customs data showed on Monday, amid the trade war between China and the United States.

China brought in 5.07 million tonnes of soybeans from Brazil in November, up more than 80 per cent from 2.76 million tonnes a year ago, data from the General Administration of Customs showed.

US imports plunged from 4.7 million tonnes in November 2017 and were down from 67,000 tonnes in October.

China has agreed two rounds of soybean purchases from the United States following the trade war truce agreed on December 1, with the shipments set to arrive at the start of next year.