Argentina’s economy should decline by 2.5% in 2023
International Monetary Fund estimates that Argentina’s economy should decline by 2.5% in 2023, and inflation will reach approximately 120% by the end of the year. “Argentina faces a very difficult situation, particularly aggravated by the drought,” said IMF chief economist Pierre-Olivier Gourinchas. (IMF)
With low reserves at the Central Bank, Argentina will partially devalue the exchange rate. The government increased the price of the dollar that citizens can buy (“solidarity” dollars), made the access to imports more expensive due to this new import tax, and offered a higher preferential exchange rate for agricultural exports. (Ministry of Economy)
Explosion in a grain drying silo of the agro-industrial cooperative C.Vale in Palotina, State of Paraná, resulted in eight dead and 12 injured on July 26th. (Civil Defense)
Exports through the Eastern Corridor of the Port of Paranaguá reached 11.1 million tonnes from January to June 2023, an increase of 17.8% compared to the 1H of 2022. This is the biggest volume in 50 years. There was a significant increase in shipments of grains in general, especially soybean, whose export volume increased by 22.4%. (State News Agency of Paraná)
Population of weeds in cotton farms is increasing. Crow’s foot grass (Eleusine indica) and the button broom (Spermacoce verticillata L.) are the most difficult to control. According to Lucas Barcellos, a researcher at Fundação MT, crow’s foot grass is resistant to glyphosate and acetyl-CoA carboxylase inhibitors, while button broom is tolerant to glyphosate. “For this reason, with the increase of weeds, the requirements are higher for farmers to carry out effective planning for control”, said Barcellos. (Fundação MT)
Approximately 180 families from the Landless Workers’ Movement occupied a 500 hectares farm in Caruaru, State of Pernambuco, on July 25th. This incident happened 24 hours after another invasion, in the State of Goiás, with 600 families. “Invasions like this, authorized by the federal government, do not solve the problem and do not guarantee a decent income for the families that are there. They serve much more to foment disorder”, said the governor of the State of Goiás, Ronaldo Caiado. (Government of Goiás; MST)
Paraná is the 6th Brazilian State to declare an animal health emergency, after an increase in cases of wild birds contaminated by highly pathogenic avian influenza. The measure is valid for 180 days. (Conesa)
In the 1H of 2023, pork imports decreased by 10.3%. Jeffrey Fajardo, executive president of the Colombian Association of Pork Farmers, said that the situation allowed Colombian farmers to gain market share. Pork produced in Colombia represents 81% of total domestic consumption. (Porkcolombia)
Mexico, the biggest chicken meat market for the USA, has already lifted most of the trade bans against the neighboring country that happened because of the avian flu. Shipments from Colorado and Washington are still blocked. (USDA)
The Alto Chaco region represents 50% of the cattle herd in Paraguay. According to Niversindo Cordeiro, vice-president of the Rural Association of Paraguay in Alto Chaco, “About 15 to 20 years ago, Alto Chaco had 250 to 300 thousand head of cattle and today it has 1.8 million… a very large growth happened in the livestock area and agriculture is also increasing a lot, mainly cotton, corn and soybean.” (ARP – Alto Chaco)
Representatives of the National Meat Institute of Uruguay participated in the International Fair of Livestock, Industry, Agriculture, Commerce and Services, organized by the Rural Association of Paraguay. At the time, the authorities of both countries agreed on the need to maintain vaccination against foot-and-mouth disease in the region. (INAC; ARP)
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