Today (Mar. 25), the market for meals in China is shown as follows:

Soybean meal: The key Brazilian farm town of Canara issued a decree that could disrupt grain export logistics and the operations of global agriculture commodities traders, according to a report by Reuters. Concerns that South American nations might be disrupted in soybean delivery, and expectations that soybean meal consumption would rise due to reducing DDGS supplies under lower operation rates in ethanol enterprises caused by crashing crude prices continued to pull US soybean futures to close with gains on Tuesday. After the Federal Reserve announced the open-ended quantitative easing (QE), the market was upbeat that US Congress could reach a $2-trillion Stimulus Deal, so US stock markets all soared last night Among them, Dow Jones jumped record 2100 points. China’s stock markets are also rising broadly today, and meal futures shrug off early losses to move higher on the Dalian Commodity Exchange. Soybean meal spot prices steadily increase by 20-40 yuan/tonne to attract some low-level purchases. Specifically, the price settles at 3070-3220 yuan/tonne today. (Tianjin 3220, Shandong 3200-3200, Jiangsu 3150-3170, Dongguan 3070-3100, and Guangxi 3090-3170.) As mills keep low operation rates due to soybean shortages, soybean meal stocks are in tension. And under the impact of the coronavirus, soybean shipments are relatively slow in Brazil. Soybean arrivals are predicted to be only 6.88 mln tonnes in April, and it is less likely that soybean crush will pick up sharply, so the tight outlook in soybean meal supply may sustain till late April. The above bullish factors will probably bolster soybean meal prices to maintain at a high level in the near term.

Imported rapeseed meal: Imported rapeseed meal prices rise in stability today, of which it partly settles up by 10-20 yuan/tonne at 2,380-2,470 yuan/tonne in coastal areas (Guangxi 2,400, up 20; Guangdong not offered; Fujian 2,440). Rapeseed is in tight supply amid the tensions between China and Canada, so the operation rate in oil mills is low. Besides, the shipment of Brazilian soybeans slows down affected by the coronavirus outbreak, so the arrivals of soybean may be lower than expected in later period. Additionally, some oil plants plan to halt the operation in April due to a shortage of soybean, and spot soybean meal price stays strong under a short supply. In addition, the aquaculture in South area is likely to start slowly with the weather warming up. However, short-term rapeseed meal price will still follow the trend of soybean meal and be easy to rise but hard to down. As there is still a downside risk of price after an ease of short supply, buyers need to pay attention to the availability of soybean and soymeal.

Imported fishmeal: Imported fishmeal prices go stable today and can be traded through negotiation. Peruvian Standard SD with 65% protein content is 11,700-12,100 yuan/tonne; Peruvian higher-quality SD with 65% protein content is 12,000-12,500 yuan/tonne; Peruvian higher-quality SD with 67% protein content is 12,600-13,000 yuan/tonne; and Peruvian Super Prime SD with 68% protein content is 13,200-13,300 yuan/tonne. Currently, fishmeal prices remain at a high level, so downstream buyers are cautious. Meanwhile, the demand is still lukewarm at present, as aquaculture has not started in the northern regions and hog stocks are also low. Therefore, there is limited upward space for fishmeal prices. However, Peru has been in a 15-day national emergency lockdown due to the spread of the coronavirus, and its Minister of Environment said that there is a possible extension in quarantine if related measures are violated. Hence, market participants speculate that the country will postpone the time to start fishing in the centre-north regions. Traders in China are thus encouraged to prop up prices. In conclusion, fishmeal market is predicted to stay stable with a strengthening trend in the near term. Stocks at port: Huangpu 65,000 tonnes, Fuzhou 32,000 tonnes, Shanghai 39,000 tonnes, Tianjin 1,000 tonnes, Dalian 10,000 tonnes, Fangchenggang 1,000 tonnes and 4,000 tonnes at other ports. FOB quotes from foreign merchants today: It is quoted steadily at 1,450 USD/tonne for Peruvian Standard with 65% protein content and 1,750 USD/tonne for Peruvian super with 68% protein content. Chilean Standard with 65% protein content is quoted steadily at 1,420 USD/tonne, and super with 68% protein content at 1,720 USD/tonne.

Cottonseed meal: Cottonseed meal price still stays stable with partial increase of 50-100 yuan/tonne today, while it also declines by 50 yuan/tonne in individual regions. Oil mills have low stocks of cottonseed meal. Besides, meals on DCE move higher after low opening and spot soybean meal rises by 20-40 yuan/tonne, offering support to cottonseed meal market. And cottonseed meal also goes up in some regions. However, the demand for cottonseed meal is limited by narrow price spread between soybean meal and it. Likewise, the demand from aquaculture also has been in an off season. Owing to the resistance psychology of downstream enterprises amid a steep rise in cottonseed meal, there are not many new orders. Given this situation, some traders cut the price to attract orders. Thus, short-term prices will likely follow soybean meal to stay strong.