Brazil: Deficit in the dairy trade balance grows to US$88.9 million in October; UHT milk and mozzarella prices fall in November

Brazil's dairy trade balance recorded a deficit of US$88.9 million in October, resulting from a combination of increased imports and a significant drop in exports. According to Secex data analyzed by the Center for Advanced Studies in Applied Economics (Cepea), the volume of milk imported in the month grew 11.6% compared to September, totaling 208.5 million liters in milk equivalent. Compared to the same period in 2023, the increase was 7.43%. However, Brazilian dairy exports suffered a significant drop of 65.91% compared to the previous month and 46.6% compared to October last year. As a result, the negative balance of the trade balance (in volume) increased by 17.7%, reaching 203.9 million liters in milk equivalent. The main factor for the increase in imports was powdered milk, which represented 66.7% of the total purchased. The volume of powdered milk imported from Paraguay and Uruguay increased by 24.4%, totaling 62.2 million liters in milk equivalent. Despite the increase in ...