China's corn imports soared last month to their highest in more than a year, customs data showed – as speculation rose that falling futures prices may tempt the second-biggest user of the grain to buy again.

China imported 304,300 tonnes of corn last month, 21% more than in October 2010 and up 68% on the September figure.

While the figure, the highest since September last year, was in part balanced by higher exports, the country remained, with net buy-ins of 263,000 tonnes, a "sizeable net importer", Barclays Capital analyst Sudakshina Unnikrishnan said.

And the data came as corn prices fell, for the first time in a month, below $6 a bushel in Chicago – a figure below which China is viewed likely to make further purchases.

'Opportunistic buyer'

"While China is expecting a record corn harvest, consumption trends are dynamic and domestic reserves will need to be replenished," Ms Unnikrishnan said.

"China tends to be an opportunistic buyer, buying on dips."

Iowa-based broker US Commodities said: "As grains near support levels, there may be some expectation that China will be a more active buyer.

"The question is will China be a buyer?"

Price gap 

Some analysts have proposed that, with China's own harvest freshly onstream, the country may lay-off further orders for now, although others point to the gap between its own prices and those in the US, the top corn exporter.

The May contract on China's Dalian exchange closed on Monday down 1.2% at 2,175 yuan ($342) a tonne, equivalent to $8.70 a bushel.

Chicago corn for May tumbled 2.3% to $6.10 a bushel, with the benchmark December lot down 2.3% at $5.96 a bushel.

The country's increasing reliance on corn imports has become a matter of huge interest among Chicago investors, given China's huge consumption, and thereby its potential for significant imports.

'Lacklustre' soybean trade 

China's buy-ins of soybeans, of which it is the top importer, were described as "lacklustre" by Ms Unnikrishnan, falling 8% month on month to 3.8m tonnes.

Soyoil imports rebounded from a weak September to reach 124,600 tonnes, although those of palm oil dropped 20% month on month to 458,000 tonnes, a decline which contributed to a 1.8% drop, to 3,191 ringgit a tonne, in futures in the vegetable oil in Kuala Lumpur.

China's sugar imports tumbled by nearly one-third month on month to 334,000 tonnes, while remaining at historically strong levels.