Soyabeans stealing corn's thunder at Brazil ports

November through January is typically the least active period for Brazilian soyabean exports, but that quiet time has lately been getting louder - and possibly at the expense of the United States. Record-large crops were harvested earlier this year in Brazil, the No. 1 and No. 2 soyabean and corn supplier, respectively, though fewer total shipments are scheduled within the next month or so than was the case two years ago.
Soybeans are not the culprit. According to shipping agency Williams, more of the oilseed is on deck to leave Brazil's ports than ever before during mid-December. But while corn shipments should be near peak, the current port lineup is only half as heavy as the 2015 record for the month, reflective of bloated world supplies.
Brazil's exports exploded in the final three months of 2015 as farmers had reaped bumper crops and the prices were especially favourable for international buyers. Corn plus soyabean shipments in that period totalled 21.3 million tonnes - most of which was corn - dwarfing 2013's high of 13.1 million.
Corn and soya output in 2017 was 30 million tonnes larger than in 2015, but lower profit potential has discouraged active selling by Brazilian farmers as both domestic and global stockpiles have swollen. Still, combined shipments are down only 9 percent from two years ago in the months of October and November.
But Brazil's soya export program is as healthy as ever for the time of year. Mid-month port lineups show 2.4 million tonnes of the oilseed on the docket, some 1 million tonnes more than the same date in 2015.
Meanwhile, the United States appears to be falling short of its lofty bean export ideas. As of Dec. 14, port inspections for the oilseed were down 13 percent from the year-ago record, although the government is expecting a 2 percent increase in annual shipments. Brazil has 4.5 million tonnes of corn in the mid-December lineup, much smaller than the 9.4 million at the same point in 2015. However, the country amassed record-shattering shipments in July through September, earlier than the usual time frame.
Brazil's export program has been running more smoothly than in years past partly owing to the technological and logistical improvements at the major ports, along with the increased use of ports in Northern Brazil. Traffic outside the major port of Paranagua in early December was nearly 90 percent lighter than two years earlier.