Agribusiness exports fall 1.3% in January

Agribusiness exports in January 2021 reached US$ 5.67 billion, a decrease of 1.3% compared to January 2020 (US$ 5.75 billion). According to the Secretariat of Trade and International Relations of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Supply (SCRI / MAPA), the drop of almost half a billion dollars in soybean grain exports was due to the low transit stock, the delay in planting the 2020/2021 crop because of a drought, and, subsequently, the delay in harvest areas due to the rains.

This reduction was largely offset by an increase in the export value of four products: corn (+ 42.5% or US$ 148.96 million in absolute values), raw cane sugar (+ 35.6% or US$ 141.06 million in absolute values), green coffee (+ 30.2% or US$ 108.05 million in absolute values), and soybean meal (+ 28.3% or US$ 99.17 million in absolute values).

The 1.3% drop in agribusiness exports combined with the 4.5% increase in exports of other products caused the share of agribusiness in Brazilian exports to decline from 39.6% in January 2020 to 38.3% in January 2021.

Imports of agribusiness products increased by 6.5% – from US$ 1.22 billion (January 2020) to US$ 1.30 billion in January 2021. The resulting trade balance was US$ 4.37 billion.

Corn

External sales of corn were predominant in the cereals, flours, and preparations sector, reaching US$ 499.86 million (+ 42.5%), with an increase of 22.1% in the volume exported and 16.7% in the average price of cereal export.

According to SCRI, corn shipments began an upward trend in August 2020 due to the delay in harvesting the second crop last year because of weather issues.

Sugar

Record volumes of raw cane sugar exports were recorded in January, with 1.85 million tons exported (+ 31.7%). The Brazilian product follows a positive trend initiated in 2020 due to decreased production by the main Asian producers; this stimulated the recovery of international prices and the exported values ​​of the commodity.

Coffee

Shipments of green coffee registered US$ 466.20 million (+ 30.2%). The volume of green coffee exported was a record for January, reaching 221,880 tons (+ 35.8%).

Soybean meal

Soybean meal in January was the highlight of the complex soy sector (grains, bran, and oil) reaching US$ 449.59 million, an increase of 28.3%. Sales were influenced by the 27.2% increase in average prices, as volumes remained practically the same compared to January 2020 (+ 0.8%). The price increase reflects the low volume of soybeans handled by world exporters, such as the United States and Brazil.

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