January 13, 2012
Agroconsult cuts Brazilian 2011-12 corn, soy forecast
Due to a recent drought in the southern states, Agroconsult, a Brazilian consultancy, has sliced its estimates on Thursday (Jan 12) for Brazil's current corn and soy plantings.
Agroconsult cut its estimate for the 2011-12 soy crop to 73.52 million tonnes, down 2% from an initial forecast published last month as well as the previous year's bumper crop.
The firm sees Brazil's summer corn production at 36.52 million tonnes, reflecting a 9% reduction from the December estimate but a 2% increase from the 2010-11 summer corn crop.
Agroconsult analyst Andre Pessoa said a drought in southern states such as Rio Grande do Sul and Santa Catarina has already caused irreversible losses for the corn crop. Soy, on the other hand, could still benefit from rainfall.
Pessoa added that the hardest-hit regions could see some relief from the drought with rains expected Thursday.
The drought in South America has underpinned international grains prices in recent weeks. Argentina, also a major exporter, is expected to see bigger losses in its soy and corn crops than Brazil, Pessoa said.
