Investors welcomed the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in South Korea, which helped ease concerns over the trade dispute between the world’s two largest economies that had disrupted flows of goods, including key agricultural products.

Yesterday, Beijing announced that from Nov 10 it would scrap tariffs that it had announced on March 4 for some US agricultural goods.

The move includes removing a 15% duty on US wheat.

“The purchases of around 120,000 metric tonnes for December shipment include one cargo of US soft white wheat and one of spring wheat,” the sources said.

“This is more of China showing commitment to buy US grains as US wheat is not the cheapest wheat around,” said one Singapore-based grains trader who has direct knowledge of these deals.

“So it is more of political move to buy these cargoes,” the trader said.

China, the top market for US farmers, has turned its vast appetite for US crops into a powerful trade war bargaining chip.

After several rounds of tit-for-tat tariffs, Chinese buyers have largely avoided US farm goods, including wheat and soybeans, in favour of other supplies.

China imported 1.9 million tonnes of US wheat in 2024, making up 17% of its total imports.

However, China has reduced overall wheat imports this year following large harvests.

Wheat imports in January-September dropped 72% from the same period last year.

In another positive sign on the trade front, a shipment of sorghum has been sent from the US to China since Trump and Xi met, the chairman of the US Grains and BioProducts Council, Mark Wilson, told Reuters.

The US shipped 5.7 million tonnes of sorghum to China in 2024, accounting for 66% of its sorghum imports.