Growth in Brazil’s rice imports generates trade deficit in the 2024/25 harvest

Brazil's rice sector faced a significant trade deficit in the 2024/25 season, according to recent data from the Ministry of Development, Industry, Commerce and Services (MDIC). The negative balance reached 152.07 thousand tons of paddy rice, a significant reversal in relation to the surplus of 99.93 thousand tons recorded in the previous season. Between March and July, exports of paddy rice totaled 549.14 thousand tons, representing a sharp drop of 37.48% compared to the 754.94 thousand tons exported in the same period of the 2023/24 harvest. This decline was even more notable in percentage terms, with a 63.6% reduction in exports, which fell from 438.17 thousand tons in the previous year to 159.71 thousand tons in the current season. According to Evandro Oliveira, consultant and analyst at Safras & Mercado, the sector is preparing for the arrival of the new harvest in the United States, one of Brazil's main competitors in rice exports, especially unhulled rice. While some ...