One of the key themes that dominated agricultural markets in 2019 was US-China trade tension. This caused trade diversion, as Chinese agricultural traders looked at other markets for goods they would have imported from the US. One of the countries that benefited most was Brazil, which saw its agricultural exports to China grow 35% between 2017 and 2018, to $31bn. 

With a phase one trade agreement having been reached between the US and China this past week, there is now a sense of relief. The question that has arisen, however, is whether the agricultural supply chains will readjust back to their pre-2017 state...