January 27, 2014

US soymeal exports hit record volume amid Argentina's peso plunge

US soymeal exports have reached a record amount last week, totalling 398,591 tonnes primarily exported to Asian destinations such as South Korea, Thailand and the Philippines as Argentinian farmers hoarded soy amid a plunging peso, analysts said.

The record soymeal exports was the biggest weekly shipment based on records dating back to 1990, according to USDA data.

"The peso is the reason why soymeal exports are so large - Argentina is out of the programme," said Terry Reilly, senior commodity analyst at Futures International in Chicago.

Argentina's farmers are hoarding about 8.4 million tonnes of soy - five times more than a year ago - as the country's currency falls, making the beans more valuable to hold than the peso, according to Leandro Pierbattisti, an analyst with Argentina's grains warehousing chamber.

The farmers limited the supplies soy processors in Argentina can crush and then sell in export markets, thus pushing business to the United States instead.

Soymeal futures at the Chicago Board of Trade jumped 1.7% at US$426/tonne bolstered by large US exports.