Brazil's new soya crop seen at 109.43 million tonnes

Brazil's 2017/18 soyabean crop should reach 109.43 million tonnes, according to an average from projections sent by analysts in a Reuters poll, while impacts from an early dryness in the season remain uncertain. A previous poll in October saw a projections' average at 109.39 million tonnes. Brazil should plant 34.8 million hectares (85.99 million acres) with soyabeans in 2017/18, compared with an average view of 34.77 million hectares in October, as more farmers opt for the oilseed instead of corn in the first crop of the year.
The uncertainty regarding the impact from below-average rains in the early stages of the season caused some views from analysts to be far apart. Safras & Mercado, for example, sees the crop at 114.71 million tonnes, the highest projection in the poll, while INTL FCStone expects a production of 106.08, the smallest view among 11 estimates.
"Despite the early dryness, conditions have now been favourable in basically the whole producing area, which should boost agricultural yields," said Flavio Franna Junior, a director at Franna Junior consultancy, which raised its view to 112.38 million tonnes from 111.47 million tonnes in October. Rabobank sees it differently. The agricultural bank cut its projection for Brazil's soya crop to 107 million tonnes from 109 million previously. "Parts of the planted areas have probably been negatively impacted by the irregular rains pattern," said Victor Ikeda, Rabobank's grains analyst.