Brazil's March soybean exports to China rise 52% on year to 8.81 million mt

Brazil's exports to China in March rose 52% on the year to 8.81 million mt, representing majority of the total soybeans exports of 11.64 million mt, according to Brazilian foreign trade department report released Monday.

In the first three months of 2020, Brazil -- the world's largest soy supplier -- exported 13.3 million mt of beans to China, up 10% on the year, the report showed.

As the coronavirus pandemic spreads, China, world's largest soybean buyer, has started to ramp up its soy purchases sensing future uncertainties, market sources said. Skepticism hovers over port operations in the Americas amid pandemic fears, as trucking and port unions have threatened to shut operations due to the pandemic.

While port authorities say they maintain normalized operations, there is a high probability of union strikes and shutdowns if the pandemic death toll mounts, sources said. The novel coronavirus has already claimed over 65,000 lives worldwide.

The Brazilian soy crop year 2019-20 -- which runs from September 2019 to August 2020 -- has started to pick pace, which has made its beans more competitive against US-origin beans. Brazilian soybean sales peak in February May every year, while US beans sales spike during the September-December period.

Brazil's soybean harvest reached 83% of the projected area of 36.4 million hectares in the 2019-20 crop year as of April 2, 1 percentage point lesser than last year's pace, agricultural consultancy AgRural said Monday.

Brazil was forecast to export 72 million mt in 2019-20, up 3% on the year, while ending stocks were forecast down 39% to 2.18 million mt, national crop agency Conab said in its December report.

According to average market estimates, Brazilian soybeans output is forecast at an all-time high range of 123 million-126 million mt for the 2019-20 crop year, which also increases its competitiveness against US-origin beans.

S&P Global Platts on Friday assessed SOYBEX FOB Santos at $336.68/mt for May loadings, while SOYBEX FOB New Orleans was assessed at $342.18/mt.

Both origins have experienced volatility in recent weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic and brought the world economy to a virtual standstill.

In coming weeks, global soybean prices could be dictated by pandemic-led global quarantine and transportation curbs, port tensions, and fiscal stimulus given by different governments, market sources said.