Anec sees Brazil’s soybean exports rising in April from 2025 after record March

Brazil’s soybean exports were estimated at 15.78 million tonnes for April, an increase of 2.28 million tonnes from the same month last year, as shipments from a record crop gather pace, according to the first forecast from grain exporters’ association Anec.

That volume would represent a slight decline from March, when soybean shipments totaled a record 15.84 million tonnes for any month, up about 100,000 tonnes from a year earlier, Anec data showed. The previous monthly record had been set in March last year.

“Brazil reached a record soybean export volume in March… With production expanding steadily, it is natural to expect new monthly records, reinforcing the country’s position as the world’s largest producer and supplier of soybeans,” Anec said in comments sent to Reuters.

According to the association, exports gained a “good pace” in March after shipments had come in below expectations in previous months because of rain and harvest delays.

Brazil’s 2026 soybean crop, with harvesting already surpassing 80% of planted area by the first week of April, had been estimated in March at a record 177.85 million tonnes, up 3.7% from 2025, according to Abiove, the association representing traders and processors, as well as Anec.

March is traditionally one of the strongest months for Brazilian soybean exports, as newly harvested beans begin moving to foreign markets. Still, there were reports of disruptions at the start of the month, including a suspension of shipments by Cargill while Brazil’s Agriculture Ministry adopted stricter phytosanitary inspections for exports to China, the world’s largest importer.

After that, a mission from the Brazilian government and private sector traveled to China to discuss a new phytosanitary protocol for exports to the Asian country.

For April, vessel lineup data indicate soybean shipments of 16.7 million tonnes, Anec said.

The strong lineup suggests room for upward revisions to the April forecast and points to a normalization in the issue involving China, Brazil’s main buyer.

In the first three months of 2026, China accounted for 75% of Brazilian soybean exports, followed by Spain with 5%, Turkey with 4% and Thailand with 3%, as well as Pakistan, Algeria, Mexico, the Netherlands, Taiwan and Iran, according to Anec.

If the current April estimate is maintained, Brazilian soybean exports should total 42.86 million tonnes in the first four months of 2026, up about 7% from the same period last year, with gains in January, when stocks from the previous crop were still available, as well as in March and April.

The chart below shows the historical trend in soybean export volumes shipped through Brazilian ports, according to Datamar data.

Soybean Exports | Jan 2023 – Feb 2026 | WTMT

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

War effects

Brazil’s soybean meal exports are expected to reach 2.7 million tonnes in April, compared with 2.15 million tonnes in the same month last year and 2.24 million tonnes in March, according to Anec.

The projected growth in shipments, signaling stronger supply and demand for Brazilian products, comes despite higher export costs stemming from the war in Iran, Anec said.

“The elevated level of risk has been putting strong pressure on logistics costs, especially through the sharp rise in ocean freight and insurance premiums,” the association said.

“This increase is not limited to routes bound for the Persian Gulf. It extends to other regions and affects the cost per tonne exported to important markets such as China,” the report added, citing ocean freight rising from $35-40 per tonne to $50-60 per tonne.

Anec also noted that, in the case of Iran, a major buyer of Brazilian corn, shipments of the grain are heavier in the second half of the year, when the second crop enters the market.

“As a result, the impact on that market remains limited for now, provided the conflict does not intensify or extend into the next semester, a period that comes after the harvest and marketing of the second crop,” the association said.

Even so, from January to March, Iran accounted for 20% of Brazil’s total corn exports, according to Anec. During that period, Brazil, the world’s second-largest corn exporter, shipped just over 5 million tonnes of the grain to all destinations.

Anec also reported rising shipments of DDGS, the byproduct of corn ethanol production used in animal feed, similar to soybean meal.

Brazil is expected to close the first four months of the year with exports of 443,600 tonnes, more than half the volume shipped during all of last year. This year, Brazil made its first DDGS exports to China, helping explain the growth.

Source: Forbes Brasil

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