CHICAGO: Chicago Board of Trade soyabean futures surged on Friday in a turnaround from sharp recent losses linked to concerns about the escalating US-China trade fight, traders said.

US tariffs on $34 billion of Chinese imports took effect as a deadline passed on Friday, and Beijing said it would retaliate with planned duties, which cover soyabeans.

China is the world’s top soyabean importer and bought more than $12 billion worth of the US oilseed last year.

Nearby soyabean futures neared a 10-year low over concerns about Beijing’s tariff reducing US soya shipments, but traders said the market was due for a bounce.

The market experienced a “sell the rumor, buy the fact” trade after the highly anticipated tariffs were implemented, according to analysts.

CBOT August soyabeans ended up 38-1/4 cents at $8.77-1/2 per bushel, after dropping to a contract low of $8.37 earlier in the session. November soyabeans climbed 38-1/2 cents to $8.94-1/4, after earlier setting a contract low of $8.53-1/4.

In China, soyameal futures fell more than 2 percent on Friday afternoon before recovering most of those losses.

US soyabean export demand has been solid, despite the trade fight. The USDA reported export sales of US soyabeans in the latest week at 1,020,300 tonnes (old and new crop years combined), above a range of trade expectations for 400,000 to 900,000 tonnes.—Reuters