Brazil’s agribusiness exports set record for April at US$13.6 billion

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Brazil’s agribusiness exports hit a record US$13.57 billion in April, up 39% compared to the same month last year, driven by shipments of soybeans, meat and forest products, the Ministry of Agriculture said Friday.

According to the Ministry, this is the first time that the sector’s exports exceeded the US$10 billion mark in April since the start of official records in 1997.

The record occurs at a time of strong demand and high prices for agricultural commodities in global markets. The sector’s main export product, soybeans were responsible for revenues of US$7.2 billion last month, an increase of 43.1% compared to April 2020.

The result also comes with a monthly export record in terms of volume, with 17.4 million tons shipped abroad.

The Ministry drew attention to the sharp 22.3% rise in oilseed prices in the period. Quotations exceeded US$400 per ton.

In the meat sector, exports had posted record sales of US$1.57 billion last month, up 22.7% year-on-year. Beef was the main export, with US$705.32 million (+22.5%). There was also growth in chicken (+18.2%, to US$598.01 million) and pork (+40.7%, to US$230.61 million) exports, the ministry added.

“Despite the record value exported by agribusiness, the amount was not enough to increase the sector’s share in Brazilian exports… The share decreased from 55.4% in April last year to 51.2% in April this year,” the ministry said in a statement.

In the first four months of the year, agribusiness shipments reached US$36.8 billion, equivalent to 44.9% of total Brazilian exports, according to the ministry.

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