Brazil soybean exports slow as China demand, early harvest disappoints<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Soybean exports out of Brazil in January will not reach 2 million mt,\n according to Agricensus calculations using export and line-up data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Brazil exported just over 1 million mt of soybeans during the first \ntwo weeks in January with a further 800,000 mt in the line up data.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And while that will eclipse last year\u2019s record of 1.5 million mt \nexported over the whole month, it does not reflect recent expectations \nthat exports will be much higher due to an early harvest in Brazil\u2019s \nsouthern states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sources say the trade war and the uncertain picture of Chinese demand\n has deterred buying of soybeans by private crushers, many of which have\n been impacted by negative crush margins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Typically, Chinese crushers would buy US beans for January shipments \nto cover March crush, but with US imports taxed at 25%, US bean sales \nhave been limited to state-sponsored purchases of 5 million mt, leaving a\n big question of what China will do for March supply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt depends how much of that (5 million mt) finds its ways to \ncrushers,\u201d said one soybean trader at an international trading house, \nadding that if much of it does trickle out then buying will remain \nmuted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Brazil remains the cheapest origin for Chinese crushers to buy beans, but trade has been \u201cvery quiet\u201d for weeks, according to Brazilian and Chinese sources, with about 20 cargoes being bought since December.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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