Premiums to Chicago prices commanded by Brazilian soybean reached their highest yet on Friday as investors anticipated greater exports by Brazil after China imposed tariffs on farm imports from the United States, Bloomberg reports.

The news agency says Brazilian soybean fetched US$2.21 a bushel more than soybean traded in Chicago, the biggest gap on record.

The report says data compiled by Commodity 3 indicate that the premium has tripled since the end of May.

It quotes an analyst for consultants Safras & Mercado, Luis Fernando Roque, as saying: “Premiums reflect the rising possibility of China being more dependent on Brazil’s soybeans.”

Data collected by the China National Grain and Oils Information Center indicate that in the final week of last month Chinese companies bought about 1.1 million tonnes of soybean from Brazil and none from the United States, Bloomberg says.