Brazil: Oilseeds and Products Update
A record Brazilian soybean crop of 101 million metric tons (mmt) is forecast for the 2016/17 Marketing Year (MY) as a result of a slight increase in planted area. Brazil is forecast to have the slowest area growth in the last five years, attributed to a higher expected cost of production, tight credit policies, higher interest rates, the economic downturn, and soybean areas shifting back to full-season corn. Crush for the 2016/17 MY is forecast at 41 mmt to meet the increased biodiesel mandate and demands from the animal feed sector. Post forecasts exports at a record of 57 mmt for 2016/17 MY due to the weaker Brazilian Real and higher Chinese demand.
