China is the main destination for soybean cargo handled at the Port of Paranaguá, representing 91.8% of the commodity. According to data from the federal government (Comex Stat), between January and March this year, 3,208,185 tons of soybeans left the main port of Paraná headed for the Asian country.
The number is 105% higher than that recorded in the same period last year, 1,563,276 tons. From 2023 to 2024, the Port of Paranaguá went from third to second place in the national movement of soybeans destined for the Asian country (20%), behind only Santos (42.4%), representing $6.7 billion FOB.
“Even with the national crop failure in Brazil, the ports of Paraná continue to move more efficiently and meet the great Chinese demand. In the first quarter, we registered a record in general historical movement, which proves the excellence of the ports in the dynamics of operations”, highlighted the CEO of Portos do Paraná, Luiz Fernando Garcia.
In addition to the logistical strategy of the ports in Paraná, the smaller harvests recorded in other countries may have influenced the increasing movement of soybeans. In Argentina, the reduction in productivity in the 2022/2023 agricultural cycle may have influenced the Chinese search for Brazilian soy, including increased demand in Paraná.
“Argentina is the third largest soybean producer in the world, after Brazil and the United States, and this certainly impacts the world market in terms of supply, product availability, and price. During this period, Brazil had a very interesting harvest, a record harvest in 2022/2023, of 150 million tons of soybeans, and occupied the space left by Argentina”, explained economics expert Giovani Ferreira.
According to Ferreira, the Argentine harvest expectation for this year is around 50 million tons of soybeans. “Brazil’s soybean exports to China will continue to grow, but from now on, perhaps the factor will no longer necessarily be the drop in Argentina, but rather an organic growth in Chinese demand,” highlighted Giovani.
The Secretary of State for Agriculture and Supply, Norberto Ortigara, highlighted that Paraná, where the largest volume of the soybean complex exported by Paranaguá originates, is making great strides in product diversification. “But soybeans continue to be our main crop, occupying 29% of the arable land,” he said. According to him, while the State has contributed to meeting the international demand for grain, it works to add value to the product, transformed into feed, which guarantees the State national leadership in animal protein and good export numbers, of chicken, pork, and fish.
Source: Portos do Paraná
