Soybean Price

The soybean price quoted in dollars per metric ton represents the internationally traded value of raw soybeans, typically referencing futures on the Chicago Board of Trade. It serves as a benchmark for crushers, livestock feeders, food manufacturers, and exporters around the world. Because soybeans are a globally fungible commodity, the U.S. dollar price is widely used regardless of where the crop is grown or consumed.

• •Quoted in USD per metric ton, with 1 metric ton equal to roughly 36.7 bushels.
• •Underlies contracts for soybean meal and soybean oil, which are derived products.
• •Influences the cost of animal feed, cooking oil, and biodiesel feedstock worldwide.

Prices respond to the balance between global production and consumption, with weather, acreage decisions, and yield being the primary supply-side forces. On the demand side, China's import appetite, U.S. and South American crush margins, and renewable-fuel policies strongly influence how much soybean product is needed. Currency exchange rates, trade policy, and competing oilseed prices also feed into day-to-day price moves.

• •Growing-season weather in the U.S. Midwest, Brazil, and Argentina can rapidly reprice the crop.
• •Chinese import demand alone absorbs roughly 60% of globally traded soybeans.
• •Renewable diesel and biodiesel mandates lift soybean oil demand, supporting bean prices indirectly.

Soybean prices have spent recent years below the peaks reached in the early 2020s, reflecting record or near-record global harvests in Brazil and the United States. The 2024-25 marketing year saw pressure from ample South American supplies and softer Chinese buying during parts of the year. Prices have stabilized into 2025 as the market digests another large U.S. crop, with values hovering near the mid-$10s per bushel range, equivalent to roughly $460-$480 per metric ton.

• •U.S. and Brazilian harvests have run above trend in three of the last four years.
• •Export competition from a record Brazilian crop has weighed on U.S. export premiums.
• •Energy market weakness at times has dragged soybean oil values and, with them, whole-bean prices.

Global soybean production regularly exceeds 400 million metric tons, with Brazil now the largest producer and the United States the second largest. Argentina's crop is more variable but contributes meaningfully to global meal and oil supplies. On the demand side, crush demand for meal in animal feed accounts for the bulk of consumption, with food use and industrial demand for oil making up the rest, including a growing share for biofuels.

• •World ending stocks typically run between 100 and 125 million metric tons, providing a meaningful buffer against shortfalls.
• •U.S. domestic crush capacity has expanded sharply, lifting demand for beans inside the country.
• •China remains the swing importer, with policy and currency decisions able to shift global flows.

Near-term prices are likely to remain range-bound unless weather disrupts a major harvest or Chinese buying accelerates. The long-run trend hinges on whether renewable fuel demand continues to absorb additional soybean oil and whether South American acreage growth finally slows. Currency volatility and trade tensions remain upside risks, while consistently high global yields remain the main ceiling on prices.

• •Analysts broadly expect prices to stay in the $430-$520 per ton band absent a weather shock.
• •Brazilian acreage expansion is projected to continue, keeping global supply well-supplied.
• •U.S. renewable diesel capacity additions could add a new layer of demand support through the late 2020s.