Brazil’s soybean exports gain pace as harvest advances

Brazil exported 2.6 million tonnes of soybeans and 1.7 million tonnes of corn in the first three weeks of February, with soybean shipments gathering momentum as harvest works advanced, customs data showed Thursday, February 23.

Soybean exports

The average pace of soybean shipments was 196,150 tonnes per working day, up from the 162,602 tonnes per working day reported in the previous week.

The pace of soybean exports is still 41% lower compared to February 2022, but at least some gaps are expected to be erased as the throughput at ports increases further during the last week of the month.

According to the latest estimates from Brazil’s grains exporters association, ANEC, the country is expected to ship between 7.6 and 8.3 million tonnes of beans in February, up from 6.3 million tonnes exported a year ago.

Corn exports

Brazil’s corn exports lost some momentum in the third week of February. This is due to domestic logistics capacity increasingly turning to soybeans while spot corn availability is declining.

The average pace of exports dropped from 158,294 tonnes in the previous week to 129,630 tonnes, which is still 221% higher compared to the previous year when the country faced a major crop loss.

Anec expects Brazil to ship 1.9 million tonnes of corn in February.

Soy meal and oil exports

Brazil’s soy meal exports through the first three weeks of February were reported at 971,793 tonnes, with average shipments per working day 11% lower than last year.

Anec expects Brazil to export 1.5 million tonnes of soy meal in February, below the 1.6 million tonnes shipped a year ago.

Meanwhile, the country’s soy oil exports remain robust, with shipments of vegetable oils and fats, mostly containing soy oil, at 122,560 tonnes in the first three weeks of February and average exports up by 52% year-on-year.

Click here to view our analysis on soy meal and animal feed market trends