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The warming of ties between the U.S. and China have boosted crop prices, with soybeans hovering near the highest levels since June 2024.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Nov. 18 announced the sale of 792,000 tons of soybeans to China for the 2025-2026 marketing year, the biggest daily purchase in two years.

Soybean futures jumped on signals that China is stepping up buying of the oilseed, offering hope for U.S. farmers after purchases appeared to have stalled.

After a flurry of orders late last month — which were the first of this season — Chinese imports of U.S. cargoes seem to have faltered, according to traders who asked not to be identified.

The pause is fueling uncertainty over whether the biggest consumer of American soybeans will import as much as President Donald Trump’s administration claims to expect.

The decision follows the meeting between President Donald Trump and  Xi Jinping, a summit that produced a trade truce that set China back on the path to buying American farm goods again.

Chinese and U.S. officials reached a broad framework agreement over the weekend in Malaysia, paving the way for Chinese leader Xi Jinping and President Donald Trump to finalize a trade deal.

Agricultural trade was among a range of issues that American and Chinese negotiators said they came to terms on, setting the table for leaders Donald Trump and Xi Jinping to finalize a deal.

China last year purchased $13 billion of U.S. soybeans — more than 20% of the entire crop — for animal feed and cooking oil, but still hasn’t booked a single shipment from this fall’s huge crop.

Soybean futures erased earlier gains after President Donald Trump said a planned meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, may not happen.