Today (Apr. 10), the market for meals in China is shown as follows:

 

Soybean meal: US soybean futures finished higher on Thursday on a neutral to bullish USDA report and as Brazil currency rose by 1%. Meal futures edge higher on the Dalian Commodity Exchange today. Soybean meal spot prices steadily go up by 10-20 yuan/tonne in tepid trading. Specifically, the price settles at 2980-3260 yuan/tonne today. (Tianjin 3250, Shandong 3200-3230, Jiangsu 3220-3260, Dongguan 2980-3100, and Guangxi 2980-3000.) Soybean meal stocks have fallen to a fresh low of less than 170,000 tonnes, for many mills are in downtime due to soybean shortages. Mills are setting limited quantity for delivery, so that more and more feed mills have to cut down or limit production. The tight supply could last till late April, and downstream feed manufacturers have started to raise prices. Soybean meal prices are thus bolstered. However, soybean arrivals at domestic ports are forecast to reach an average of 9.5 mln tonnes both in May and June,  so mills will gradually pick up operation rates from the middle of this month. Meanwhile, catering businesses have got a tremendous shock globally due to the novel coronavirus, so the demand for soybean meal is still not optimistic in the second quarter. Domestic distributors are booking profits by selling soybean meal on the high prices, capping the upward space of meal prices. Soybean meal prices will probably keep range-bound to be strengthening in the short run amid tight supplies, and once supply tensions ease, prices may fall again. Buyers are suggested to make appropriate replenishment on the dips and remain cautious in chasing after high prices.

 

Imported rapeseed meal: Imported rapeseed meal price goes up today, of which it settles up 10-30 yuan/tonne at 2,290-2,420 yuan/tonne in coastal areas (Guangxi 2,330, up 30; Guangdong not offered; Fujian 2,370, up 20). Rapeseed crush stays at low levels amid continuous tensions between China and Canada. And many soyoil mills halt the operation due to lack of soybean. In coastal regions, spot soybean meal stocks have declined to a record low of below 170,000 tonnes and oil plants have no spots for sale, which bolster rapeseed meal price. But the total arrival of soybeans will reach up to 29.1 mln tonnes in May-June. And the operation rate in domestic crushing mills will gradually pick up since mid April. Nevertheless, global catering industry is under a great impact of coronavirus pandemic, so the demand outlook in the second quarter is not optimistic, limiting price rises of rapeseed meal. As rapeseed meal market will likely frequently fluctuate recently, buyers are suggested to not chase up prices too high.

 

Imported fishmeal: Imported fishmeal prices are stable with a partial rise today and can be traded through negotiation. Peruvian Standard SD with 65% protein content is 12,000-12,300 yuan/tonne; Peruvian higher-quality SD with 65% protein content is 12,200-12,700 yuan/tonne; Peruvian higher-quality SD with 67% protein content is 12,800-13,100 yuan/tonne, a partial rise of 100 yuan/tonne; and Peruvian Super Prime SD with 68% protein content is 14,000 yuan/tonne. President of Peru declared to extend the state of emergency till April 26th, as the novel coronavirus has not been brought under control across the world. It seems that it will be difficult for Peruvian vessels to start fishing in the new season. And in China, high-quality fishmeal is in tight supplies, which encourages traders to prop up prices. Hence, fishmeal prices are bolstered to continue the uptrend. However, the overall consumption of fishmeal is limited now, although aquaculture has started in northern China. In addition, downstream buyers are cautious at current high prices and just take hand-to-mouth buying, which also limits the fishmeal market. The subdued trade in the market is limited the upward space of fishmeal prices. Dominated by bullish factors, fishmeal market is predicted to maintain its strengthening trend in the short term. Stocks at port: Huangpu 50,000 tonnes, Fuzhou 29,000 tonnes, Shanghai 30,000 tonnes, Tianjin 1,000 tonnes, Dalian 8,000 tonnes, Fangchenggang 1,000 tonnes and 4,000 tonnes at other ports. FOB quotes from foreign markets today: It is quoted steadily at 1,470 USD/tonne for Peruvian Standard with 65% protein content and at 1,700 USD/tonne for Peruvian super with 68% protein content. Chilean Standard with 65% protein content is quoted steadily at 1,470-1,520 USD/tonne, and super with 68% protein content steadily at 1,720 USD/tonne.

 

Cottonseed meal: Cottonseed meal prices keep steady with individual rises of 30 yuan/tonne today. Some cottonseed oil factories have no pressure from inventories with previous contract. Additionally, the tight supply of spot soybean meal may last until late April. Besides, meals on DCE edge up today, and spot soybean meal steadily up by 10-20 yuan/tonne, and cottonseed meal price picks up from low levels in some regions. However, the coronavirus pandemic severely hits global catering services, impacting the demand for meats. And the demand from aquaculture has been in an off season, so the downstream demand for cottonseed meal is poor. In consequence, factories have few new orders, depressing cottonseed meal price. It is expected that cottonseed meal market will move sideways with fluctuations in the near term.