Markets Print edition: 2018-02-02

China's soyameal futures jump

Published February 2, 2018 Updated February 2, 2018 12:00am

China's soyameal futures jumped more than 1 percent on Monday, as speculative money piled in on expectations that feed producers would step up buying to build up stocks ahead of China's Spring Festival. The most active soyameal futures contract on the Dalian Commodity Exchange rose 1.19 percent to 2,804 yuan ($443.46) per tonne, its biggest daily gain in about two months. Feed producers usually build up stocks ahead of the Spring Festival that can last for one month's use, said two crushers in the south.
The Spring Festival holiday, or Lunar New Year, which falls on February 15 this year, is China's biggest holiday and the peak season for meat demand. Soyameal prices also were tracking gains in soyabean prices in the US market on forecasts of continued dryness in Argentina.