News

April WASDE spotlight shines on South American crops

A market analyst says South American soybeans were the spotlight of the April World Agriculture Supply and Demand Report.

Mac Marshall with the United Soybean Board tells Brownfield USDA cut their estimate for Argentina’s soybean production by another 6 million metric tons on Tuesday.

“But that is counterweighted by a 1-million-ton increase in Brazilian production. That crop has loomed large this season and now USDA has taken it up from 153 million to 154 million metric tons.”

He says while that was the big mover on the April balance sheet, it was generally expected by the trade.

“I wasn’t really surprised by much and again you didn’t really see much moving in terms of prices in the markets Tuesday. At this stage the Brazilian crop is basically all the way harvested and we have a good read on the Argentine crop and the continued degradation there.”

He says the May report should give more insight into global demand for soybeans and soybean products and how shifts in South American production might impact US exports.