The U.S. ag attache in Paraguay has lowered its estimate of the country’s soybean crop to 8.1 MMT, 1.2 MMT lower than USDA’s current estimate. It says while above-average yields were reported at the start of harvest, stress from extreme heat to later-planted soybeans is now apparent. It says yields from the last quarter of the harvested will be “well below average.”
The attache expects Paraguayan soybean area to increase by 3% in 2014-15 and production reaching a record 8.7 MMT.
Meanwhile, the attache in Argentina has left its estimate of the country’s soybean crop unchanged at 54 MMT. It says rains during February “put the breaks on some of the damage” done by the dry weather and high temperatures during December and January. “However, there are still areas in western and southern parts of the Buenos Aires province, where the majority of the second-crop soybean is planted, that are still suffering from dry conditions. Some of the second-crop soybeans planted in these areas will not recover while some were never planted to begin with. The onset of excess moisture could cause problems with weeds, fungus and insects,” states the attache.
