(April 14): Archer-Daniels-Midland Co (ADM), one of the world’s largest crop traders, is shrinking its operations in China as part of a company-wide restructuring effort following a downturn in profits and a bruising accounting scandal.

Citing a “challenging environment,” the company said on Monday in a statement that it’s phasing out domestic trading at its Topefer Shanghai unit.

Thin margins in China, the world’s top commodities consumer, pushed the company to make the reductions, according to people familiar with the matter. Dozens of employees, many of whom worked in Toepfer Shanghai, were informed on Monday that their jobs had been cut, the people added, asking not to be identified because they aren’t authorised to speak to the media.

ADM said in February it would cut 600 to 700 jobs globally this year as part of a cost-saving push as it grapples with shrinking profits. The world’s top agricultural traders have suffered from rising uncertainties around geopolitical risks and climate change.

Those firms must also now deal with the impact of a trade war. Escalating trade tensions between China and the US in recent weeks have effectively halted imports of American crops, shutting down trade with a partner that used to be the Asian nation’s top food supplier.

ADM has also faced the fallout from an accounting investigation that wiped out billions of dollars in market value over the past year.

Coming after a more limited set of job cuts earlier in 2025, the latest reduction will trim ADM’s presence in China to a minimal number of staff, all of whom will focus on importing operations, the people said. 

ADM began operations in China in 1995, when the company bought an animal feed plant. It later grew to become a major supplier of agricultural products across Asia.

The company also said on Monday that other operations at its Shanghai office are unaffected. “ADM remains deeply committed to China,” it said in the statement.

Shares of ADM rose 1.1% to US$46.33 (RM204.76) as of 10.28am in New York trading.

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