Argentina reduced exports of sunflower and sunflower meal, but increased exports of soybean meal

In April, Argentina began active processing of the new soybean crop, therefore increasing exports of soybeans and their processed products, and reducing exports of sunflowers and their processed products to a multi-month minimum.

Compared to the previous month, exports decreased in April:

• sunflower - by 47% from 323 to 171 thousand tons, of which 44% were delivered to Bulgaria, 20% to Spain and 19% to Turkey,
• sunflower oil – by 23% to 161 thousand tons, of which 63% were delivered to India,
• sunflower meal – by 27% to a 4-month low of 160 thousand tons, most of which was shipped to Europe, in particular the Netherlands, Italy, and the United Kingdom.

At the same time, in April, exports of soybean meal from Argentina increased by 17% compared to March to 2.37 million tons, and soybean oil - by 12% to 563 thousand tons.

It is worth noting that the reduction in sunflower exports may be temporary, as the country still has significant seed processing potential until the end of the 2025/26 MY. Oil World experts predict that during March-August, another 3.14 million tons of sunflower will be processed in Argentina, which will exceed the corresponding figure of the previous season by 15%.

Argentina continues to hold a leading position in the global sunflower oil and meal market during a period of seasonal shortage of products from the Black Sea region, increasing competition in the oil market in India and the meal market in the EU, which are the main sales areas for both Argentine and Ukrainian products.