Operation rates continue a bigger-than-expected decline this week due to as mills are facing with a delay in soybean arrivals or swelling meal inventory. Soybean crush at domestic mills totals 1,355,200 tonnes (meal 1,070,608 tonnes and oil 257,488 tonnes), down 190,400 tonnes or 12.32% from 1,545,600 tonnes last week. Meanwhile, operation rates (capacity utilization) are 38.22%, down 5.36% from 43.58% in the previous week. Soybean crush is expected to rally from the low level to 1.58 mln tonnes next week and 1.70 mln tonnes in week 16.

In the crop year of 2020/21 (from Oct 1st, 2020), China’s soybean crush totals 47,502,334 tonnes, up 4,687,634 tonnes or 10.95% from 42,814,700 tonnes a year earlier.

In the calendar year of 2021 (from Jan. 1st, 2021), China’s soybean crush amounts to 22,011,396 tonnes, up 1,230,339 tonnes or 5.92% from 20,781,057 tonnes of the corresponding period in 2020.

Fig.: Soybean Weekly Crush in China (2016-2020)

Details for weekly crush by region are shown as follows: