(Reuters) - Argentina has reached an agreement with China to end the Asian nation's freeze on Argentine soyoil imports, the government said on Friday, but some traders were skeptical that the trade dispute had been resolved."Thanks to the talks the Argentine government has been holding with China. soyoil exports to China have been normalized," Pablo Lopez, an agriculture ministry spokesman, told Reuters.
Last year, Argentina imposed anti-dumping measures on some Chinese manufactured goods, prompting China, the world's largest buyer of soyoil, to halt shipments from Argentina this past March and impose new import standards on soyoil from the South American country.
The spat threatened a key hard currency earner for Argentina, the leading global exporter of soyoil, and forced Argentine exporters to look for new markets.
On Friday, traders said they were waiting for an official announcement from Beijing.
"We've heard rumors, but I'd like to see confirmation from China's government," said one trader, who asked not be named.
Argentina exported 1.84 million tonnes of soyoil to China last year, bringing in $1.4 billion and accounting for 77 percent of Chinese soyoil imports.[ID:nN25113553]
Several shipments from Argentina to China that had been scheduled for April and other months were delayed but not canceled while the two countries tried to reach a solution.
"It's odd that with Argentine soyoil $40 to $50 cheaper than other countries, not a single Chinese importer is asking us to load the contracts that we had already agreed upon," another trader said.
Argentina is the No. 3 global exporter of soybeans and the top supplier of soymeal and soyoil.
A drought brought soybean output down to 32 million tonnes last season, but plentiful rains have boosted yields. Argentina and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) expect 2009/10 soy to reach a record 54 million tonnes. (Additional reporting by Luis Andres Henao, Maximiliano Rizzi and Walter Bianchi; Writing by Luis Andres Henao; Editing by Toni Reinhold)
Source: http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2511945220100625
