São Paulo Leads Agribusiness Exports and Closes First Quarter with a US$ 4.9 Billion Surplus

In the first quarter of 2025, São Paulo’s agribusiness sector maintained strong performance in foreign trade, recording a trade surplus of US$ 4.90 billion. Although this represents a 19.9% decrease compared to last year’s period, the result reinforces the sector’s importance to the state economy. The surplus stems from exports totaling US$ 6.40 billion — 14.6% lower than in 2024 — and imports amounting to US$ 1.50 billion, reflecting a 9.5% year-over-year increase.

“This result shows that we have a strong, innovative, and diversified production base, capable of delivering solid outcomes even amid temporary market fluctuations,” said Guilherme Piai, São Paulo State Secretary of Agriculture and Supply.

The analysis was prepared by Carlos Nabil Ghobril, coordinator at the São Paulo Agribusiness Technology Agency (Apta), along with researchers José Alberto Ângelo and Marli Dias Mascarenhas Oliveira from the Institute of Agricultural Economics (IEA-Apta), which is linked to the São Paulo State Department of Agriculture and Supply. It shows that agribusiness exports accounted for 41.7% of São Paulo’s total exports in the first quarter of 2025, while imports from the sector represented 6.8% of the state’s total imports.

São Paulo Agribusiness Exports by Product Groups

The five leading export product groups were:

● Sugar and ethanol complex: Accounted for 25.8% of total agribusiness exports, reaching US$ 1.654 billion. Sugar made up 88.7% and ethanol 11.3% of this amount.

● Meat sector: Represented 13.9% of the sector’s foreign sales, totaling US$ 887.91 million, with beef responsible for 82.5%.

● Juice group: Accounted for 13.5%, reaching US$ 863.07 million, of which 98.2% was orange juice.

● Forestry products: Represented 11.9% of the export volume, totaling US$ 758.98 million, with pulp comprising 55.1% and paper 35.5%.

● Soy complex: Made up 7.9% of total exports, totaling US$ 507.27 million, with 81.7% being soybeans.

These five groups represented 73% of São Paulo’s agribusiness exports. Coffee ranked sixth, with a 7.3% share and US$ 465.75 million in exports, of which 73.4% was green coffee and 23.1% soluble coffee.

It is worth noting that during the period analyzed, export values increased for coffee (+67.2%), juices (+37.5%), meats (+25.0%), and forestry products (+6.0%), while sugar and ethanol (-50.5%) and soy complex (-17.9%) saw declines.

Main Export Destinations for São Paulo Agribusiness

● China: Represented 19.3% of total exports, mainly acquiring soy complex products (29%), meats (28%), and forestry products (23%).

● European Union: Accounted for 16.4%, with leading products being juices (37%), coffee (17%), and forestry and plant-based products (11% each).

● United States: Held a 15.9% share, purchasing juices (40%), meats (15%), animal products (9.5%), forestry products (8.8%), and coffee (8.6%).

Compared to last year, São Paulo saw a 12.6% decline in exports to China but significant increases of 34.4% to the European Union and 27.7% to the United States.

São Paulo’s Role in National Agribusiness

São Paulo maintained a leading position on a national level, accounting for 16.9% of Brazil’s total agribusiness exports. São Paulo ranks first among Brazilian states, followed by Mato Grosso (15.7%) and Minas Gerais (11.9%), the latter being a standout in coffee exports.

Performance of Brazilian Agribusiness

Brazilian agribusiness as a whole saw export growth in the first quarter of 2025, reaching US$37.83 billion—a 2.1% increase year over year. Imports totaled US$5.18 billion, up 11.9%.

With these results, the sector’s trade surplus reached US$ 32.65 billion, a 0.7% increase compared to the first quarter of 2024. Agribusiness continues to play a key role in offsetting the trade deficit generated by other sectors of the Brazilian economy.

Source: Notícias Agrícolas

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