TRADE TIDES 70 FEED & ADDITIVE MAGAZINE June 2025 Compound feed prices developed somewhat sideways in the first half of 2025. In Europe, feed grains are only up slightly at +3% year-on-year, and substantially lower than 2022 and early 2023. Soybean and soymeal prices in the U.S. and China show a mixed picture in the past months, but are about 15-22% lower than one year ago. Compound feed prices for pig, broiler and layer in China are slightly lower than one year ago as prices stopped their decline and bottomed in the first half of 2025. GEOPOLITICS, TRADE RESTRICTIONS RESHAPE THE AGENDA Since the new U.S. president took office in January, a record number of executive orders and trade policies were announced, on top of existing measures, such as the 2018 Section 301 tariffs eligible for some Chinese products, or general tariffs valid for all countries. In February and March, another combined 20% tariff was imposed on China based on the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) related to a lack of cooperation in the opioid crisis. In April, the U.S. announcement of sweeping global reciprocal tariffs as high as 48% caught most market participants off guard. What followed was a tit-for-tat tariff escalation between the U.S. and China—its main supplier of essential micro ingredients—with rates up to 125%, though many pure vitamins and other ingredients were exempt. Then, in a surprisingly swift trade deal announced on May 12th, both countries agreed to cut and suspend reciprocal tariffs by 115% for 90 days. Importers, trade lawyers, and customs face challenges declaring goods amid a tangle of rulings and uncertainty over whether certain premixes qualify as vitamins, mixed feeds, or other substances under HTS codes, drastically changing the level of applicable tariffs. Alongside U.S. trade actions, the EU is pursuing anti-dumping cases involving Lysine, Choline chloride, and other amino acids, with similar plans in BraVitamins, Amino Acids YTD Prices (Indexed, FOB China) Amino acids index Vitamins index Jan 2022 Jan 2023 Jan 2024 Jun 2025 -20% -12% 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 Source: Kemiex Vitamins, Amino Acids YTD Prices (FOB China) DL-Methionine Vitamin B1 Vitamin B9 Vitamin B6 L-Lysine sulfate Biotin Vitamin B12 1% L-Valine Amino Acids Index Vitamin B5 Vitamin K3 MNB L-Tryptophan Vitamin C 35% L- Threonine Vitamins Index Vitamin E 50% Vitamin B3 Vitamin D3 Vitamin B2 L-Lysine HCI Vitamin C Vitamin A1’000 -60% -40% -20% 0% 20% Source: Kemiex
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