Article

by Carey Gillam

DES MOINES, Iowa, Feb 15 - A Chinese trade delegation signed agreements with U.S. grain companies on Wednesday to buy 8.62 million tonnes of soybeans from the United States and will ink more deals on Thursday for a record-setting purchase topping 12 million tonnes.

Chinese powerhouses like COFCO Co Ltd, the country's largest state-owned grain trading house, and Sinograin, which manages state grain reserves, signed deals in Des Moines, Iowa, with Archer Daniels Midland, Bunge Ltd, and Cargill Inc, among others .

The Chinese delegation was expected to sign more purchase agreements in Los Angeles on Thursday, which would bring the total amount to a record of more than 12 million tonnes, said Kirk Leeds, director of the Iowa Soybean Association.

The soybeans will come from supplies harvested last fall and the crop that will be planted this spring. The value of the purchases in total will be around $6 billion.

At a similar event last year, Chinese companies signed deals to buy 11.56 million tonnes of U.S. soybeans valued at $6.68 billion in the then largest one-off purchase of U.S. soy.

The high-profile event comes at a time when the United States and China are at odds over a series of issues like Beijing's currency policy, international action to quell the violence in Syria and a yawning bilateral trade gap.

"There is a lot of publicity about Chinese imports here. They want to remind Americans this is a two-way street. They buy from us, too," said Leeds, who helped arrange a visit by Xi to an Iowa soybean farm scheduled for Thursday morning.

The signing also comes at a time in which the United States has accused China of undervaluing its currency to give its companies a price advantage in international trade.

"They are keeping their trade lines open despite their currency issue that has not only upset the United States but the rest of the world as well," said Shelley Goldberg, director of global resources and commodities strategy at research group Roubini Global Economics in New York.

Goldberg said it was uncertain if China was buying the soybeans for consumption or stockpiling.

The deals, signed after trading at the Chicago Board of Trade had ended for the day, were cheered by grain traders.

"This is a little surprising," said Rich Nelson, director of research at advisory firm Allendale Inc.

"They had previously made announcements that they would not be buying as much as last year," he said, adding that the purchases could boost CBOT soybean futures by 5 to 10 cents a bushel.