Exports of agribusiness products reach US$ 9.9 billion in February

For the International Relations advisor at the Confederation of Agriculture and Livestock of Brazil (CNA), Pedro Rodrigues, the result was within expectations for the agricultural sector, mainly due to the volume of exports in January. “In January we had an all-time record for sales of agricultural products abroad. In February, this drop was expected because we went through a process at the beginning of the year of delay in the soybean harvest in the south of the country. But this situation is normalizing. And this has been reflected in the numbers that have been released”.

Despite the National Grain Company (Conab) estimating a record soybean production of 151.4 million tons for 2022/2023, the delay in the oilseed harvest influenced the decline in exports for the month – with a reduction in soybean export volumes by grains.

Drought and excessive rainfall could affect soybean quality and delay corn planting, warns Conab

Sugar and wheat also showed a drop in foreign sales. There was less domestic availability for export, due to concerns about the Argentine wheat crop, and less sugarcane crushing due to climate issues.

Beef also had an unfavorable performance due to the international price reduction and decrease in export volume. One of the reasons for this drop in volume is the atypical case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (EBB), popularly known as “mad cow” disease, reported on February 22 to the World Organization for Animal Health (WHOA).

As a result of this case, exports to China were temporarily suspended from February 23rd. “In fact, foreign sales of beef to the Asian country fell by 15.35 thousand tons in February 2023, reaching 71.72 thousand tons”, explained the Ministry in a note. In addition, the volume exported to the United States, Chile and Egypt decreased.

Pedro Rodrigues explains that this drop in beef exports was already expected for the month, due to the end of the Chinese New Year celebrations. He also details that the data do not reflect the impacts of the embargo. “In the February data, we still don’t have very clear reflections of what the embargo meant. These data and impacts will be visible if the embargo lasts longer”.

Despite all the factors, in the accumulated result for the year, Brazilian agribusiness exports reached a record for the first two months: US$ 20.1 billion.

Main products shipped by agribusiness:

Corn

Brazilian corn shipments totaled more than 2 million tons, with foreign exchange of US$ 689 million. According to the analysis by the Ministry of Commerce and International Relations, the favorable performance of the cereal is due to the low international offer and the high national production of the grain for the current harvest. In the latest Conab survey, the harvest estimate is around 125 million tons of corn.

“Corn is a product that we have good prospects for this year. Brazil saw the opening of new grain markets and the country knew how to take advantage of this moment and has been sending a lot of corn abroad. And the expectation is that Brazil will continue as a safe supplier of corn. This has contributed to a very high volume of Brazilian corn exports in recent years,” explained CNA advisor Pedro Rodrigues.

Thus, Brazil should be the world’s largest corn exporter in the season. The main grain importers in February were Japan, South Korea, Colombia, Algeria and Vietnam.

Cellulose

External pulp sales broke a record in value and volume for the months of February, reaching US$ 766 and 1.6 million tons, respectively. The most industrialized countries in the world are the main consumers of Brazilian cellulose: China, the European Union and the United States.

Soybean meal and oil

Foreign sales of soy bran, a product of the soy complex, reached US$ 710 million, due to the increase in the average export price, which rose 23%. The main importers were Thailand, the Netherlands, Poland, France and Indonesia.

Still in the soy complex, soy oil had a record performance in revenue and volume for the months of February, reaching US$ 268 million, despite the drop of around 16.8% in the average export price. India and Bangladesh boosted sales and imported 33% (73 thousand tons) and 25% (57 thousand tons), respectively, of the entire exported volume.

Chicken meat

Chicken meat already had a record for the months of February, with a record of 372 thousand tons and US$ 726 million. According to SCRI/Mapa analysts, since Brazil has no record of cases of avian flu, it manages to obtain records in shipments of this protein, in view of the world scenario. The main buyers were China, Saudi Arabia, Japan and the United Arab Emirates.

The analyst at Safras & Mercado, Fernando Iglesias, explains that Brazil remains an exception in relation to avian influenza. What he considers has been excellent for the Brazilian market.

“Brazil has stood out with problems involving avian influenza around the world. The United States and the European Union are heavily impacted by the disease. Of course, we have to consider that, at the moment, avian influenza is circulating here, roaming the Brazilian territory. But, in any case, the health protocol present here in Brazil still refers to maintaining exports, even if there are cases of the disease on commercial farms, which I think is unlikely. But the OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) protocol points to the closure by nucleus, which means that if we have cases of avian influenza, the suspension will happen in a regionalized way, it will not affect the entire Brazilian territory”.