September 21, 2010

Brazil's soy sales rise 1%

Brazil's sales for old and new soy crept ahead by 1% as of Friday (Sep 17), local agricultural consultancy Celeres stated in a weekly report.

For the upcoming 2010-11 crop, Celeres said in the report issued Monday (Sep 20) that Brazil had sold 15% of its crop as of Friday (Sep 17), up from 14% both in the previous week and at the same time a year earlier.

Brazil's farmers often swap beans for other items such as seeds or fertilisers. For instance, farmers in Mato Grosso sold 22% of their 2010-11 soy as of Friday (Sep 17), versus 21% the week before and a year earlier, Celeres said.

Mato Grosso's farmers are expected to begin planting their soy in mid-September. They typically harvest and sell their beans earlier than in other states. As of Friday (Sep 17), they sold 98% of their soy - from 97% the week before and 98% a year earlier, Celeres said.

For the old 2009-10 soy crop, which ended harvesting in May, Brazil saw sales rise slightly to 88% as of Friday (Sep 17). This compared to 87% the week before and 93% at the same time a year earlier.

Brazil is expected to have produced a record 68.5 million tonnes of soy for the 2009-10 crop season, compared with 57 million tonnes the previous crop year.