SAO PAULO: Brazil’s corn export season kicked off this month, albeit slowly, with the number of ships expected to load and depart with the product in July being less than half what it was in the same year-ago month, Cargonave shipping data showed.

Some 39 vessels are lined up to load corn at Brazilian ports this month, down from 85 in the same period a year ago, according to Cargonave.

In 2020, Brazil exported around 33 million tonnes but this year weather problems slashed output, compromising exports. According to market projections, Brazil is now poised to export about 20 million tonnes of corn this year.

“There were lots of contract washouts, with people redirecting sales to the internal market,” said Frederico Humberg, chief executive of trading firm AgriBrasil.

Brazil typically exports most of its corn starting in the middle of the year, after the second corn crop is harvested from the fields.

With the country’s second corn crop, planted after soybeans are harvested, Brazil competes aggressively with the United States in global markets. In 2021, however, a drought and more recently frosts slashed the country’s output and reduced Brazil’s export prospects.

A broker, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters domestic buyers are paying more than external buyers, affecting shipments as less corn is going to be exported.

According to grain exporting group Anec data, Brazil will ship about 2.5 million tonnes of corn in July, compared with 5 million tonnes from the same month last year.