CHICAGO (Dow Jones)--China has purchased an additional 8.45 million metric tons of U.S. soybeans, bringing its two-day total to 11.52 million, the U.S. Soybean Export Council said.
The deals, with several companies, were signed Friday in a ceremony coinciding with Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to Chicago.
Friday's deals were mixed between the 2010-11 marketing year and the 2011-12 year, said Ralph Loos, the export council's spokesman.
"Some deliveries won't be until this time next year, until after the harvest. Some deliveries will be almost immediate."
The deals follow Thursday sales of 3.07 million metric tons that were primarily for 2011-12.
The total value of Thursday and Friday's deals was $6.18 billion, Loos said.
Soybean futures are trading at more than two-year highs as strong global demand from China and elsewhere fuels concerns farmers won't be able to replenish depleted inventories. And Chinese imports are likely to set another record in the coming crop year, with U.S. sales climbing to 25 million tons or more, said Xiaoping Zhang, acting China country director for the American Soybean Association, a trade group.
