China has yet to secure much of its soybean supply for December and January as high premiums for Brazilian cargoes discourage buyers, a development that could prompt Beijing to tap state reserves to meet near-term needs, three trade sources said.

China still needs to purchase about 8–9 million metric tons of soybeans for December-January shipment after covering cargoes through November with hefty purchases of Argentine beans in recent weeks, the sources said. Escalating Washington-Beijing trade tensions continue to shut out U.S. supplies. "China is not buying U.S. beans because of the trade war and Brazilian beans are too expensive," said one oilseed trader at an international trading company which supplies agricultural products to China.

"China might end up using its own reserves for th

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