Palm | Kelapa Sawit

BEIJING, May 14 (Reuters) - China, the world's top soy buyer, is likely to import 5.63 million tonnes of the oilseed in May, the commerce ministry estimated on Monday, up 15 percent from actual arrivals of 4.88 million tonnes in April.

The figure, the highest since last November, is in line with analyst estimates of 5.7-6.0 million tonnes. Chinese crushers have increased imports on encouraging crushing margins. [ID:nL4E8GA1QA]

The ministry also forecast imports in May of 163,761 tonnes of soyoil, the largest monthly imports since July 2011, and 425,290 tonnes of palmoil.

The projections, based on reports by buyers, may not be in line with official arrival data issued by Customs, but provides a reference to gauge supply.