Uncertainties Loom Despite Argentina Beef Export Record in 2023

Argentina beef exports set a record in 2023 despite local government measures aimed at curbing prices in the domestic market, such as export taxes (retenciones). However, this year, uncertainties may force the Argentine livestock sector to take a step back.

Beef shipments (bone-in and boneless) from Argentina totaled 682,000 tonnes, according to data from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, and Fisheries of Argentina collected by the consultancy Safras & Mercado. The volume is 7.7% higher than the 633,000 tonnes exported in 2022.

“This growth trend is closely tied to China, which bought 73% of boneless meat and virtually all bone-in meat sold by Argentina,” said analyst Fernando Iglesias from Safras & Mercado.

Argentina caters to a different Chinese demand than Brazil’s: the exported animals are mostly cull females aged over 40 months. Brazilian livestock farmers are required to supply young animals as old as 30 months to the Chinese market.

One of the factors that allowed Argentinians to export more was a “discreet” increase in local production, according to the analyst.

See below a chart containing information about Argentina beef exports, measured in TEUs, from January 2020 to November 2023. The data is from DataLiner.

Argentina Beef Exports | Jan 2020 – Nov 2023 | TEU

Source: DataLiner (click here to request a demo)

In its latest report on January 12, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) estimated a 5.1% increase in beef and calf production in Argentina, reaching 3.3 million tonnes. It also projected a 4.7% increase in domestic consumption, reaching 2.43 million tonnes.

“The deterioration of the purchasing power of the Argentine population reduces the ability to keep this meat in the domestic market,” said Hyberville Neto, director of the consultancy HN Agro.

According to Yago Travagini, animal protein specialist at Agrifatto, government measures to limit exports were more political, as not all nine cuts of meat that had exports suspended are highly consumed domestically.

Analysts believe that the country’s exports will either remain stable or drop this year. “It is difficult to predict how this market will behave. We have to monitor the unfolding of the macroeconomic scenario,” said Hyberville Neto.

Source: Globo Rural

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