São Paulo – Brazilian soy exports to the Arab countries expanded 89% from January to August this year as against the same period last year. According to figures supplied by the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade, revenues with sales to the region rose from US$ 63.8 million to US$ 121.3 million. In terms of volume, they rose from 169,300 tonnes to 268,300 tonnes, growth of 58%.
To the secretary general at the Brazilian Association of Vegetable Oil Industries (Abiove), Fábio Trigueirinho, there has been no special reason for the greater exports to the region. According to him, there may have been a supplier change among the main sellers of the product – the United States, Argentina and Brazil – due to price. In general, Arab countries have been expanding their imports of food to establish regulatory stocks.
The main Arab buyer for soy in grain was Saudi Arabia, with US$ 112 million and 24,000 tonnes. The second was Egypt, with US$ 8 million, the third, Sudan, with US$ 177,000, and the fourth, the United Arab Emirates, with US$ 33,000.
Trigueirinho recalls that the advance also reflects the expansion of soy prices. While the price of each metric tonne sold to the Arabs in the first eight months of 2010 was US$ 377, this year they rose to an average of US$ 452.
The main supplier of soy in grain to the Arabs was the state of Mato Grosso, which answered to US$ 65.8 million and 131,000 tonnes. In the same period of last year, the state had exported just 23,000 tonnes to the region, with revenues of US$ 9 million. The second was Paraná, with US$ 18 million and 38,000 tonnes, as against US$ 9.5 million and 26,000 tonnes in 2010. The third was Goiás, with US$ 15 million and 30,000 tonnes. From January to August last year, Goiás did not sell to the Arab world.
According to the secretary general at Abiove, current exports and those to take place up to January are from the last soy crop, which had record production. Early next year the new crop should start being picked – and later exported – and sowing is only awaiting the start of rains. Normally, most exports are up to August, but Trigueirinho believes that due to the record there should not be reduction of exports up to the end of the year.
Brazilian production this year was 75 million tonnes. Apart from producers being pleased with the good soy prices presented last year, in the period of cultivation, another positive point was the record productivity of crops. An average 3,100 kilograms were picked per hectare.
*Translated by Mark Ament
