Official figures indicate that China imported about 2.07 million tonnes of soybeans from Brazil last month, 720 percent more than a year earlier, Reuters reports.

The news agency, citing Chinese customs data, says Brazil was the source of nearly one-quarter of Chinese imports of soybeans last month, having been the source of 3.3 percent a year earlier.

The United States was the source of 67 percent of Chinese imports of soybeans last month, having been the source of 88.5 percent a year earlier.

The Brazilian share of the Chinese market for soybeans is expected to grow this year because the higher proportion of protein in Brazilian soybeans makes them better value for money than soybeans from other places, Reuters says.