April 17, 2009

Argentina's 2008-09 soy harvest is seen falling to 37 million tonnes as drought hits yields, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Wednesday (Apr 16), cutting its last estimate of 39.4 million tonnes.

 

According to government figures, Argentine farmers gathered a healthy soy harvest of 46.2 million tonnes. The country is one of the world's top soy exporters.

 

Despite widespread rains in February, the dryness returned, hitting yields in later-planted crops.

 

The exchange said in a weekly crop progress report that the final harvest is not seen exceeding 37 million tonnes, warning that output could fall even more if soy yields proved to be poor in north-eastern provinces.

 

A soy harvest of 37 million tonnes would be Argentina's smallest since the 2004-05 campaign, when farmers gathered 39.7 million tonnes.

 

Dry, warm weather has allowed Argentine farmers to make swift progress to bring in their beans.

 

According to the report, farmers had gathered crops on 45.6 percent of harvestable lands by Wednesday (Apr 16), 10.1 percentage points ahead of last season's pace, the report said.

 

Average yields stand at 2.24 tonnes per hectare, 30 percent lower than a year ago.

 

The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) is expecting the output to be 39 million tonnes.

 

Argentine farmers are also harvesting 2008-09 corn, with production expected to fall to 13.5 million tonnes from 22 million tonnes a year ago due to the parched conditions that cut corn area and yields.

 

Farmers gathered 59.2 percent of the lands planted with commercial-use corn by Wednesday, 9.3 percentage points more than a week earlier but lagging the previous harvest by 15.6 points, the exchange said.

 

It said production could slip below its estimate if yields dragged down the current average before the last of the crop is brought in.

 

The USDA also estimates corn output at 13.5 million tonnes, while the Argentine Agriculture Secretariat foresees a crop of between 12.5 million and 13.8 million tonnes.