Porto Alegre, August 23, 2023 – Brazilian exports continue to show excellent results, both in terms of volume and revenue. The point of attention is the price per ton, which has been on a downward trend for a few months. It is worth pointing out that Brazilian pork production is high and domestic demand is still unstable, therefore, the strong pace of exports is fundamental for availability and price formation in Brazil. As for domestic demand, it suffers due to the challenging economic environment, with indebted households and expensive credit in Brazil. In addition, there is a large supply of substitutes for animal-origin proteins in the Brazilian market (chicken and beef), which results in a lower attractiveness of pork, emphasizing that it occupies the third place in the consumption preference of households in the country.
In July, Brazil exported 101.514 thousand tons (fresh + industrialized), according to data compiled by SAFRAS, up 7.32% from the 94.592 thousand tons registered in the same month last year. The average price per ton last month was USD 2,411.88, the lowest since April, as a result of the lower price paid by China. At this point, it is also worth mentioning the appreciation of the real against the dollar registered since the beginning of the year, compromising the conversion of the ton into reals. The average price per ton was BRL 11,577.56 with the conversion, the worst level since May 2022. That is, the industries’ margin is falling, which is a negative factor for live pigs in the domestic market. Total export revenue was USD 244.8 mln, the lowest level since April of this year, which is natural considering the decline in tons.
The main importer of Brazilian pork continues to be China, with 38.398 thousand tons in July, which corresponds to a share of 37.83%. The data are excellent, considering that the Chinese pork chain is still in crisis due to oversupply. The average price per ton paid by China was USD 2,435.73, the lowest level in the last 12 months, as can be seen in the attached chart.
The second-largest destination for Brazilian pork in July was the Philippines, with 10.820 thousand tons, a share of 13.18%. The country currently pays more than China, USD 2,584.02 per ton. The third-largest importer of the month was Hong Kong, with 7.557 thousand tons and a share of 7.45%. Other positive highlights of the month were Vietnam, Chile, and Singapore, with volumes that exceeded 5 thousand tons.
From January through July 2023, Brazilian exports reached 679.754 thousand tons, an increase of 14.7% compared to the 592.548 thousand tons registered in the same period of 2022. As for revenue, it reached USD 1.644 bln in the accumulated result, up 24 .8% from the USD 1.317 bln registered in the first 7 months last year.
Copyright 2023 – Grupo CMA
