Brazilian soybean harvest gains pace, matches 5-year average: AgRural

New Delhi — Brazilian soybean harvest continued to gain traction in the week ended April 3 on dry weather in most states, agricultural consultancy AgRural said April 5, putting pressure on US soybean export demand.

Soybean farmers had harvested 78% of the projected acreage as of April 1, compared with 83% for the same period a year ago and 5-year average of 78%, AgRural said.

The dry weather across central and southern Brazil favored first crop corn and soybean harvesting, weather agency Maxar said April 5.

Steady harvest progress in Brazil is likely to pressure US soybean shipments in coming days as the South American nation's soybean exports have picked up pace in March.

According to the foreign trade department's report released March 22, Brazil had exported 7.6 million mt of beans in the first three weeks of March, compared with 49,498 mt and 2.9 million mt exported in whole of January and February, respectively.

There were concerns that incessant rains of January and February may lead to excessive moisture in the soybean crop, which may potentially damage the oilseed, particularly in Mato Grosso and Parana, AgRural said. However, with dry weather in the past few days, those concerns are not significant anymore, it said.

According to the report, soybean harvesting pace in Rio Grande do Sul has remained below the national average amid rains. But the overall productivity in the southern state of Brazil is likely to be high, AgRural said.

As a result, Brazil's soybean production forecast for the 2020-21 marketing year (February 2021 to January 2022) is seen steady at the current estimate of 133 million mt, AgRural said.