Major world soya supplier Argentina got heavy rains over the last week that could set the stage for a larger-than-expected area to be planted this season, the Buenos Aires Grains Exchange said on Thursday. The exchange did not boost its soya area estimate but said it might if good weather encourages farmers to devote more land to the crop.
"There could be an impact on planned sowing, increasing the zone above our current projection," the exchange said in its weekly crop progress report. But any expansion at this point would be minimal, said agricultural economist Manuel Alvarado Ledesma, noting most of Argentina's prime soya area in the provinces of Buenos Aires, Cordoba and Santa Fe has already been planted.
"Even if good weather continues, I don't think there is much room or time for farmers to plant more than they had expected to," he said. The exchange said that, nation-wide, 25 percent of the 18.6 million hectares (45.96 million acres) expected to be planted with 2011/12 soya was already in the ground, marking a 12.5 percentage point advance during the week.
"Strong rains fell over most farming areas in the days leading up to this report. These showers allowed the recharging of soils in most growing areas, guaranteeing very good flowering of soya over the weeks ahead," the report said. "The provinces of Cordoba and San Luis still need rains in order to have favourable moisture conditions," the report said.
Argentina is the world's top soyameal and soyaoil exporter and the No 3 soyabean supplier. The government says farmers will produce between 52 million and 53 million tonnes this season, up from 48 million in the previous. Planting of commercial use corn was meanwhile slowed by rainstorms over the last week. "Sowing nation-wide has covered 58.3 percent of the 3.74 million hectares estimated for corn production, reflecting progress of only 1.5 percentage points compared with our previous weekly report," the exchange said.
"In central Buenos Aires province, planting was delayed due to rains in the days leading up to this report," the exchange added. "Despite this, 70 percent of the corn expected to be planted in the area has been sown." Argentina's corn production should hit a record 28 million tonnes this season if the weather stays favourable, Alberto Morelli, the head of the Maizar industry group said this week.
The country is the world's No 2 corn supplier after the United States. It produced 23 million tonnes of the grain last season, according to government data, which was also a record. The exchange said it expects a 2011/12 wheat crop of at least 12.6 million tonnes. "It could be higher if weather conditions are favourable," the report said.
Harvesting nation-wide has reached 10.5 percent of the 4.6 million hectares devoted to wheat, marking a 4.3 percent advance over the seven days through Thursday. The government authorised 300,000 tonnes of international wheat sales on Wednesday, under its export quota system.
Another 400,000 tonnes of corn are expect to get export approval next week, according to local market sources. Farmers complain about the quota system, saying it drives prices down by oversupplying the domestic market, allowing international traders to buy at cheap prices and export at a huge profit when the sporadic authorisations are granted.
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