Soaring soy, corn prices bring Brazilian sellers to market: IMEA

Farmers in Brazil’s number one producing soybean state have sold forward two thirds of this year’s bumper record crop with corn also seeing an increase, official data from the farm economics institute (IMEA) of Mato Grosso showed Monday.

Mato Grosso's farmers sold an additional 13.2% of the anticipated crop of the province during the month of March, bringing the total sales for the current 2017/18 campaign to 61.6%, in line with 2016/17 sales at the end of March 2017.

However, only a month ago less than half of the crop had been sold with total sales significantly lagging the same point last year when cumulative sales for the 2016/17 season already stood at 58.1%.

Cumulative 2017/18 soy sales have, until now, consistently lagged last year's, as rains at the start of the planting season delayed plantings and sales, but soaring Brazilian soy prices through March have revved up sales.

Brazilian Paper Paranagua premiums to the CBOT front-month soy contract jumped from $0.76 at the end of February to $1.09 at the end of March, Agricensus price data showed, a rise of over $10/mt (around 2-2.5%) on the outright bean price.

Mato Grosso is expected to produce 31.79 million mt of soybeans this year, up 1.7% on the year, with the entire Brazilian crop estimated at 117.9 million mt, according to the latest estimate from consultants AgRural.

Corn sales pick up

The increase in bean sales was mirrored in the corn market, which saw a monthly gain of 12 percentage points in March, bringing total sales to 37.7%, slightly ahead of last year, while total sales only increased 1.9% during March 2017.

Mato Grosso is expected to produce 25.91 million mt of corn during the 2017/18, down 15% on the year, with the total Brazil corn crop estimated at 89.9 million mt, according to Agrural.

The front-month outright corn price for Brazilian corn gained 8% on the month to $211/mt at the end of March, Agricensus price data showed.