Jul 28, 2020
Brazil's Agricultural Exports to China continue to set Records
Author: Michael Cordonnier/Soybean & Corn Advisor, Inc.
Brazil's agricultural exports to China set records during the first half of 2020. From January through June, China accounted for 40% of all of Brazil's agricultural exports according to data from the Brazilian Minister of Agriculture. China's share was record high followed by other Asian countries at 17% of the total and the European Union at 16% of the total.
The amount of Brazil's agricultural exports to China was more than the combined exports to the European Union, North America, the Middle East, South America, and Africa. Put another way, for every US$ 1 of exports to the European Union, Brazil exported US$ 2 worth of products to China. For every US$ 1 of exports to the United States, Brazil exported US$ 7 worth of products to China.
During the first six months of 2020, agricultural exports accounted for 51% of the total value of Brazil's exports, which is up from 43% during the same period last year. From January through June, Brazil's agricultural exports totaled US$ 51.63 billion, up 9.7%, while exports from all the other sectors of the Brazilian economy declined 20%.
The top 10 agricultural exports during the first six months of 2020 accounted for 80% of the total receipts. Soybeans accounted for R$ 20.5 billion or 40% of the total, followed by beef (7% of the total), cellulose (6%), poultry (6%), soybean meal (6%), sugar (5%), coffee (4%), cotton (2%), pork (2%), paper (2%), and other commodities (20%). Corn is not on the list because most of Brazil's corn exports occur during the second half of the year, not the first half.
Soybean exports to China increased 30% during the first half of 2020 and meat exports increased 114% during the same period. Soybeans and protein represented 87% of Brazil's exports to China and China accounted for 72% of Brazil's soybean exports during the first half of 2020.