Soybean futures settled higher to finish the trading week and posted a tepid weekly gain. The agricultural commodity rose nearly 1% on upbeat Chinese demand, though there are concerns that the US and China could trigger another trade war that would hurt American crops. Could soybeans trend higher if a second dispute occurs, or will they plummet to $8?

July soybean futures picked up $0.0625, or 0.74%, to $8.505 per bushel at 19:07 GMT on Friday on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBoT). Soybean prices recorded a 0.21% increase for the week, but they are still down 11% year-to-date.

According to the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), China has executed four major soybean purchases for the 2019-2020 and the 2020-2021 marketing seasons. This is in addition to the nearly 700,000 tons of US corn that will be shipped to private buyers in Beijing in the current and upcoming marketing years.

All eyes will be on the USDA’s latest supply-and-demand report next week. Analysts are anticipating the US government will highlight ample inventories of soybeans, corn, and wheat on slumping demand.

Meanwhile, new General Administration of Customs data reveals that the world’s top soybean buyer importers 6.716 million tons of the oilseed in April, down 7.64 million tons from last year. In the first four months of 2020, China imported 24.51 million tons of soybeans.

Investors are fearful that Washington and Beijing could participate in another trade dispute over the coronavirus pandemic. The US administration contends that China mishandled COVID-19 and allowed the outbreak to spread globally. The White House is considering a variety of options, including new tariffs and full or partial cancellations of its debt owed to China. Beijing is ostensibly preparing for anything as local state-run media alleged that President Donald Trump said he is willing to “terminate” the phase-one trade deal. China could retaliate by unloading some of its Treasury holdings.

Brazil announced that it is set to hit a new soybean export record. The world’s top soybean producer said it exported 16.3 million tons in April, a 9.4 million jump from last year. The old record stood at 12.3 million tons in May 2018.

In other agricultural commodities, June corn futures dipped $0.05, or 0.16%, to $3.18 per pound. June wheat futures tumbled $0.10, or 0.2%, to $5.155 a bushel. June coffee futures were flat at $1.1165 per pound.