August 11, 2025

 

Tax changes in Argentina could boost Brazilian soybean exports

Brazilian exports of processed soybean products could benefit from recent changes to Argentina's export tax structure, which slightly reduced the competitiveness of the Spanish-speaking country, said Brazilian industry group Abiove.

 

At the end of July, Argentine President Javier Milei's administration cut the country's export tax on soymeal and soybean oil to 24.5% from 31% previously, while the tax on raw soybean exports was reduced to 26% from 33%.

 

The decision narrows the tax differential between processed soy products and raw beans from 2 percentage points to 1.5, reducing the competitiveness of Argentina's soymeal and soybean oil, Daniel Furlan Amaral, Abiove's director of economics and regulatory affairs, said in an interview.

 

Abiove represents the soy industry in Brazil, which is the world's second-largest exporter of soymeal and soy oil.

 

"This differential may seem small, but it has always been what attracted investment into Argentina's soybean crushing industry," Amaral said.

 

"This tax differential is a key factor in Argentina's industrial competitiveness. It allows the country to maintain relatively lower costs than others," he said.

 

Still, the head of Argentina's grains exporting chamber CIARA-CEC rebuffed the idea the lower export tax could affect the nation's soy crushing numbers.

 

"There's no improvement or loss in the competitiveness of Argentina's soy milling due to a change in the export duty," Gustavo Idigoras said.

 

Argentina is expected to export 30 million metric tonnes of soymeal in the 2025/26 season, compared with 23.2 million tonnes from Brazil, according to data from the US Department of Agriculture.

 

Argentina's lead in soy oil exports is even greater, with 6.6 million tonnes projected versus 1.3 million tonnes from Brazil, according to USDA.

 

The change could open new competitive opportunities for Brazil, which exports soymeal to many of the same markets targeted by Argentina, Amaral said.

 

"Brazilian soymeal becomes more competitive. If Argentina now has less margin to benefit from the tax difference, Brazil gains a bit more competitiveness," he said.

 

The new tax structure could also benefit Argentine farmers and boost exports of raw soybeans in the coming years, Amaral said.

 

"In my view, this opens the possibility of revitalizing soybean production in Argentina. It's not something that will happen overnight, but it signals that Argentines may invest more in agricultural technology," he said.

 

-      Iowa Farmer Today