Ecuador
Ecuadorian Banana Prices Remained Stable During W48 (Dec 5)
Ecuadorian banana spot prices remained stable during W48, with a reference price of USD 8.8/13.5kg box and USD 10.85/18.14kg box FOB. Exporters and growers were expecting an active week but demand remained stable. Low inventory is preventing a decrease in price. The forecast is that by late W51 and W52, demand will increase after the holidays. FOB prices are forecasted to reach around USD 12.55/13.5kg and USD 15.85/18.14kg.
Ecuador Reduces Its Banana Exports in 2022 by 23.7M Boxes (Dec 7)
Accumulated shipments between January and October 2022 totaled 315.70 million boxes, a 7.50% drop. Ecuador, the world's leading banana exporter, has seen its revenue from banana shipments fall over the year. The Association of Banana Exporters of Ecuador (AEBE) report shows that the accumulated exports of October totaled 315.70M boxes, a decrease of 7.50%, equivalent to a decrease of 23.69M boxes in the period. The decline is due to the performance of its two main markets. On the one hand, the European Union imported only 76.86M boxes (26.32% of the total), a 9.72% drop compared to the 85.31M boxes registered in the same month of 2021. That is 8.45M fewer boxes. Russia, the second largest market for Ecuadorian bananas, imported 67.07M boxes (22.97% of the total), reflecting a drop of 2.70%, that is, 1.86M boxes compared to the previous period.
Ecuador: We Have Not Received a Satisfactory Proposal From Mexico (Dec 8)
The Minister of Production, Foreign Trade, and Investment of Ecuador mentioned that there is no satisfactory response from Mexico to the approaches that Ecuador has made to seal the trade agreement. For a proposal that will allow saying that bananas are within the agreement with the levels of quotas of export income that Peru believes is the minimum necessary to enter the market.
Spot Prices for Ecuadorian Bananas Increased at the Start of W49 (Dec 9)
Spot prices for Ecuadorian bananas increased at the start of W49, from USD 8.8 to USD 11.05 FOB for the 13.5 kg box and from USD 10.85 to USD 13.85 FOB for the 18.14 kg box. This increase corresponds to high demand from multinational companies that buy from Ecuador to fulfill their supply shortage from Central America. Buyers know how competitive the Ecuadorian spot market can get so they start buying at high prices moving the price trend up further. Banana inventory in Ecuador has remained low since W47.
Costa Rica
Banana Producers in Costa Rica Express Concern Due to Exchange Rate and Minimum Wage Changes (Dec 5)
Costa Rican banana producers have expressed concern regarding two macroeconomic factors that could influence their competitiveness in 2023. Costa Rica experienced high inflation in 2022, affecting minimum wages. For 2023 there will be an increase of 6.62% in the minimum wage. Labor costs represent approximately 40% of the production cost of bananas in Costa Rica, equivalent to an increase of 2.65% in the total cost of the banana box. Parallel to this effect, the Costa Rican Colon has strengthened against the US dollar. Consequently, exporters receive fewer Colones for every USD, with a revalorization of 11% in the last 9 months.
Argentina
Banana Dollar in Argentina and Why It Is Considered Good News (Dec 8)
The Argentinian Government signed an agreement with banana importers to reduce the price of bananas in the domestic market and to curb the escalation of inflation, with this measure, the "banana dollar" arises, in exchange for maintaining prices and guaranteeing foreign currency to importers, who bring bananas from Ecuador. The "banana dollar" does not imply a special price for banana growers, rather the Government agrees to reduce the term to deliver the dollars to importers to 30 days, instead of 60 to 180 days.
Brazil
Brazilian Banana Exports Retreat in Part of the Year (Dec 6)
Brazilian banana exports fell for a part of 2022 (January to November). According to SECEX, the volume shipped was just 78K tons in the period, down 22% compared to 2021, due to the low national supply associated with the climatic problems of recent years and the reduction in investment in cultural treatments due to the high cost of production, and logistical problems.
Laos
The First “Banana Train” Departs From Laos to China (Dec 8)
A freight train carrying 25 cold chain containers loaded with 500 tons of fresh Laotian bananas left the train station in the Laos capital Vientiane on December 7th. The train will travel the entire China-Laos Railway to reach Changsha, the center of Hunan province in the interior of China. This is the first "banana train" to go directly to a specific Chinese city since the Sino-Laos Railway entered service in 2021. The two sides aim to achieve an average of over 1M tons of agricultural product trade volume target between them. Banana is the second largest item in Laos' agricultural product exports. In the first half of 2022, Laos exported USD 141M of bananas.
Poland
The FOT Spot Price of Green Bananas in Poland in W48 Remained at the Same Level as W47 (Dec 6)
FOT spot prices for green bananas in Poland for W48 were unchanged and remained high as in W47. The price for brand-name bananas ranged between USD 21.03-22.08/18kg while no-name brands were sold within USD 18.93-19.98/18kg. This is due to increased demand caused by the current cold weather as well as fewer bananas arriving in Poland. The lack of banana supply from a big international banana brand is especially noticeable in W48. Additionally, banana-origin countries are raising destination prices in anticipation of high demand in Q1 of 2023.
