Brazil’s agro exports up 36.4% in August to US$14.8 billion; corn at historic record high

Amid rising prices and volumes, foreign agribusiness sales registered a record US$14.81 billion in August, up 36.4% from the same month in 2021.

Foreign sales of agribusiness accounted for 48.1% of Brazil’s total exports.

Imports of agricultural products registered US$1.68 billion, the highest value in the historical series that began in 1997.

The value was 34.5% higher than the same period in 2021.

The value and volume highlights for all months, including August, were fresh corn and beef, soybeans, soybean meal, fresh chicken meat, and cellulose.

CORN

In August, corn exports exceeded US$2 billion for the first time in any month in the historical series, reaching US$2.03 billion.

Two variables explain this result: a record volume of 7.5 million tons and high average export prices.

The record 2021/2022 corn harvest of 113.3 million tons (+30.1%) allowed a record export of the grain in the same month, increasing the internal availability of the grain.

The European Union was the leading importer of Brazilian corn. In addition to European Community countries, other import markets were Iran, Egypt, Japan, and Colombia.

FRESH BEEF AND POULTRY

Beef exports accounted for 52.6% of Brazil’s total meat exports.

Total exports amounted to US$1.36 billion, a historical record, with an increase of 8.7% in volume and 6.5% in average price.

Chinese acquisitions are the reason for this record.

The Asian country increased imports of Brazilian beef from US$633.60 million in August 2021 to US$852.83 million in the same period of 2022 (+34.6%).

The top three markets besides China were the United States, Chile, and Indonesia.

Chicken meat exports reached a record high in August, reaching US$902.28 million, or an increase of 36.3% compared to the US$661.99 exported in 2012.

Foreign sales increased in the main markets, except for China.

The top five importers of Brazilian chicken meat were China, Japan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and South Korea.

SOYBEANS

China is the leading importer of Brazilian soybeans, with a market share of 73.3% of the exported volume (4.46 million tons) or US$2.79 billion in August 2022.

Other importing countries were Iran, Vietnam, Spain, Japan, Thailand, and Turkey.

Foreign sales of soybean meal totaled US$949.00 million in August 2022, 45.8% higher than the US$651.08 million exported in the same month of 2021.

The volume exported increased by 19.1%.

However, the 22.4% increase in average export prices was the most critical factor in the expansion of foreign sales of the product.

The European Union continues to be the leading importer of Brazilian soybean meal.

Other Asian markets that purchased the product were Indonesia, Thailand, Iran, and South Korea.

MAIN MARKETS

China continues to be the leading trading partner of the Brazilian agricultural industry. The main products exported to China were soybeans, fresh beef, raw cane sugar, and cellulose.

According to SCRI, participation increased by more than one percentage point in four Asian countries: Iran (from 2.5% to 5.7%), Japan (from 2% to 3.4%), Indonesia (from 1% to 2.4%) and India (from 0.6% to 2.0%).

Another country that increased its participation was India, whose imports of Brazilian agricultural products increased from US$60.64 million in August 2021 to US$297.27 million in August 2022 (+390.2%).

Two products, crude soybean oil, and crude cane sugar recorded high participation.

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