P.M. BRIEFING : China Buys More U.S. Wheat

China, the No. 1 customer for U.S. wheat in the last two years, bought 359,775 metric tons of soft red winter wheat at subsidized prices, the Agriculture Department reported today.

The grain was worth $43.5 million based on Chicago prices. At 36.7 bushels to the ton, the transaction called for the delivery of the equivalent of 13.2 million bushels of wheat during October.

With the sale, Beijing has purchased 2.04 million tons of U.S. wheat for delivery during the 1990-1991 marketing year, which opened June 1.

Although it is one of the world’s largest wheat producers, China has been a major importer because domestic production has not kept pace with population growth and increased demand for wheat.