SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazil's exports of orange juice fell 19.7% in the first six months of the 2024/25 crop when compared to the same period in the previous season, exporters' group CitrusBR said on Wednesday.
The Latin American nation exported 430,078 metric tons of orange juice in the period, said CitrusBR, which gathers firms exporting citrus juices in Brazil.
WHY IT'S IMPORTANT
Brazil is the world's largest producer and exporter of orange juice, whose frozen concentrate global prices have been hovering around historic highs in New York amid lower orange supply in Brazil and Florida.
ADDITIONAL CONTEXT
Orange output from Brazil's key growing regions has fallen in recent years due to adverse climate conditions and the spread of greening, an incurable disease that reduces productivity.
The current crop in Brazil's key regions is seen near a 30-year low, the most recent outlook from research center Fundecitrus showed in December.
KEY QUOTES
CitrusBR executive director Ibiapaba Netto noted that lower exports from Brazil also come amid a scenario of lower consumption.
"The sector faces five cycles of small and medium crops and, according to international references, an unprecedented price rise that shows that demand decline is inevitable," Netto said in a statement.
BY THE NUMBERS
The revenue from Brazil's orange juice exports rose 42.7% from July to December, to $1.88 billion, amid higher international prices, government data compiled by CitrusBR showed.
Europe has kept its place as the top buyer of Brazil's orange juice in the period, representing 42.7% of the total shipped amount.
(This story has been corrected to say that the volume exported in the period is 430,078 metric tons, not 535,604 metric tons, in paragraph 2)