Soybean-related stocks exploded on Wednesday following President Donald Trump's latest comments in the ongoing trade war with China.
- COOT stock is blasting higher. See the real-time price action here.
Trade Tensions
In a fiery Truth Social post on Tuesday afternoon, Trump accused Beijing of an “Economically Hostile Act” by “purposefully not buying our Soybeans, and causing difficulty for our Soybean Farmers.”
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“We are considering terminating business with China having to do with Cooking Oil, and other elements of Trade, as retribution,” Trump said, adding that "we can easily produce Cooking Oil ourselves, we don't need to purchase it from China."
The latest escalation instantly transformed the landscape for small-cap oilseed and agricultural biotech stocks, triggering a frenzy of buying and short-covering.
Soybean Short Squeeze
Australian Oilseeds Holdings Limited (NASDAQ:COOT) led the charge, trading nearly 350% higher on Wednesday morning.
The stock had been under pressure from trade tensions, Nasdaq compliance issues and delisting worries. COOT's modest float, high short-interest and heightened attention after Trump's remarks created the perfect conditions for a short squeeze.
Shares of Origin Agritech Limited (NASDAQ:SEED) were up 63% and Arcadia Biosciences, Inc. (NASDAQ:RKDA) stock was up 46% in early trading on Wednesday.
Other agritech stocks also blasted higher, including:
Wednesday's soybean-related rally is a textbook short squeeze: low-priced stocks with significant short interest are driven sky-high on news, forcing short sellers to buy back shares at elevated prices.
Trump's proposal that America could "produce Cooking Oil ourselves" set off the short squeeze—a single statement lit the fuse for explosive moves.
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