Argentina wheat harvest could tick up on favourable weather, soil conditions

ARGENTINA: The 2025/26 wheat harvest could be the second-best on record, the Rosario grains exchange said in a report on Friday, given favourable weather forecasts and excellent soil conditions for planting.

That will allow farmers to widen their planting area to 7.2 million hectares (17.8 million acres), the exchange said, which could yield a larger harvest of 21.2 million metric tons. The exchange currently forecasts a harvest of 21 million tons.

“Let’s hope that reality confirms this optimistic forecast,” the exchange said. Wheat planting kicked off this week with major delays caused in some areas by heavy rains in recent days.

Also, the government this week extended a tax cut on exports of wheat through next March. “This measure not only improves profitability for producers, but also provides more room for investment in technology and raw materials,” the exchange said.

Storms are also likely further delaying the soy harvest, the exchange said, which had regained some momentum after a previous deluge left fields soaked.

As of Thursday, the harvest was 77% complete, according to government data cited by the exchange. In Buenos Aires province, however, an agricultural heartland, it was only 61% complete, with virtually no progress made in a week in the province’s north.

“Excessive humidity, combined with the risk of further delays in harvesting due to the inability to access the plots, raises concerns about possible impacts on the quality of the grains still planted,” the exchange said. This could hit the final harvest, it added, though the exchange cautioned it was still too early to estimate.