Top Executive at Chinese Tech Firm Huawei Arrested, Puts Strain On U.S.-China Talks
Chief Financial Officer Meng Wanzhou of Huawei was arrested in Canada on behalf of the U.S. and faces possible extradition to America for allegedly violating the trade embargo with Iran.
Meng is also a vice chair on Huawei’s board and is the daughter of the company’s founder Ren Zhengfei.
Huawei is the world’s largest telecommunication equipment and second largest cell phone manufacturer and reported $93 billion in revenue last year. They have previously been in the spotlight of Western governments about concerns that they are using their devices to spy for the Chinese government and have been suspected of violating Iranian sanctions. Chinese officials have stated that they fiercely opposed the arrest of Meng and demand her immediate release. Jan soybeans were down nearly -9.5 cents overnight on the news.
Export Sales Announcement
Private exporters reported to the U.S. Department of Agriculture export sales of 198,120 metric tons of corn for delivery to Mexico. Of the total 106,680 metric tons is for delivery during the 2018/2019 marketing year and 91,440 metric tons is for delivery during the 2019/2020 marketing year.
Argentina is Approved to Export Soy Oil to China, No Word Yet on Soymeal
Last weekend at the G20 Summit in Argentina, China agreed to buy 300,000-400,000 tonnes of soyoil from Argentina, compared to 120,000 tonnes over the past three years. Both soyoil and meal prices have been hit hard in China as raw soybean imports from the US have been cut off. Nonetheless, China has not given approval for soymeal imports from Argentina just yet, as they would still prefer to import unprocessed beans and crush them domestically. Argentina is the world’s largest exporter of both soymeal and oil but Argentine soy crushing plants have only been running at 55% capacity as crushers must compete with exporters for supply following a drought-stricken soy crop last year.
Brazilian Soy Planting Heads For Home, Argentina Nearly Halfway
According to AgRural, Brazilian farmers are now 89% complete with soybean planting, ahead of this time last year at 84% and the 5 year average of 78%. At this pace, bean harvest could begin as soon as mid-December, nearly 2 weeks ahead of normal and possibly the earliest ever. In Brazil, the second crop corn is planted immediately after beans are harvested and the second crop produces roughly ⅔ of all Brazilian corn. Further south in Argentina, soybeans are 41% planted and corn is 38%. There has been excellent conditions so far for the Argentine crop and corn planting is set to accelerate as farmers deliberately slow down in November to avoid crops pollinating during the hottest parts of January.
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