According to forecasts by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA), it is expected that soybean production in Argentina in the 2019-20 marketing year (April-March) will be reduced by 3.6% to 53 million tons.
The reason for the decline in soybean production is an increase in the sown area of corn and, accordingly, 1%, to 17.8 million hectares, sown area for soybeans.
It is also forecasted that soybean exports in the 2019-2020 marketing year will grow by 4% year-on-year to 12.5 million tons due to increased export deliveries and current terms of trade, which provide higher returns for bean exports than for soybean meal and oil The USDA report says.
Argentina is the third largest soybean producer in the world and the largest exporter of soybean meal and oil.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the share of soybeans in Argentina in the 2019-2020 marketing year will drop by 1% year-on-year to 41 million tons, as current trading conditions are contributing to an increase in the export of whole soybeans, rather than further processing.
"Another factor affecting this decline is the recent elimination of the difference in export tax between whole soybeans and soy products," the USDA said. “This difference was 3% and contributed to the growth of the processing sector in Argentina over the past two decades. However, this elimination has significantly affected profitability, reducing the competitiveness of the sector. ”
