December 19, 2007

Brazil's 2007/08 soy crop 35 percent sold

Brazilian soy producers have sold forward 35 percent of the 2007/08 crop by Dec. 14, private analysts Celeres said on Monday.

This was compared to 28 percent the same time a year ago. On average over the past five years, 33 percent of the new crop had been sold forward by this time.

Mato Grosso, Brazil's No. 1 soy producer state, sold half of its expected crop by Dec. 14, up from 40 percent sold forward the same time last year, Celeres said. The state leads others in forward sales.

Parana, the second largest soy-producing state, has sold 19 percent of its new crop, unchanged from last year. Third largest producer Rio Grande do Sul state has sold 17 percent, up from 15 percent at this time in 2006.

Brazil can expect a soy crop of 62.3 million tonnes, Celeres said in its latest forecast.

Soy prices in the Brazilian spot market were 33.8 percent above the same month last year, according to Celeres.