REUTERS — At least three U.S.-bound cargo ships are preparing to load with soybeans at two ports in northern Brazil in the first such bulk shipments since last summer, according to shipping data seen by Reuters.
The unusual shipments from Brazil, the top global soy supplier, to the United States, the No. 2 exporter, are expected to arrive by early spring, several weeks earlier than past Brazil-to-U.S. shipments.
Current prices for importing beans from the South American nation are considerably lower, analysts said.
Although U.S. farmers harvested a sizable crop last autumn, Brazilian farmers gathered a record crop and are harvesting what is projected to be their second-largest crop on record.
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“As Brazil has very low prices, we have a difference of around $50 per ton between f.o.b. port prices here and there in the U.S.A. This more than covers the logistical cost of getting Brazilian soy into the U.S.,” said Daniele Siqueira, analyst with AgRural.
Brazilian soy exports to the United States soared to around 420,000 tons in 2023, up from only about 4,000 tons the previous year, according to Brazil’s agriculture ministry.
Shipments scheduled for 2024 already total more than 100,000 tons, according to maritime agencies.
Livestock and poultry producer Perdue Farms chartered all three vessels. It operates a port terminal and crushing facilities on the U.S. East Coast. A Perdue Farms spokesperson declined to comment on the shipments.
