Browse Data and Analysis

On December 27, 2023 the Government of Mexico published a presidential decree to extend the exemption of tariffs and easing of administrative procedures for the importation of basic food basket products through December 31, 2024.

Post lowers marketing year (MY) 2022/2023 soy production at 20.5 million metric tons (MMT) still below the USDA official on lower than expected harvest area and yields due to drought. Post lowers MY2022/2023 crush to 26 MMT due to decreased exports and the lowest crush operation rates decades during recent months.

Mexico’s 2024 blueberry production is forecast at 81,000 MT, an eight percent increase over 2023 on sufficient water access and growing export demand. The rate of production growth is projected to be slower in 2024 compared to 2023 due to competition from Peru.

The Brazilian orange crop for Marketing Year (MY) 2023/24 is forecast at 408 million 40.8-kg boxes (MBx) - standard reference, equivalent to 16.5 million metric tons (MMT), a decrease of 1.03 percent compared to the estimate of current crop MY 2022/23 (around 412.3 million boxes or 16.67 MMT), due to the incidence of greening, which has been affecting Brazil’s citrus belt.

FAS/San Jose collaborated with three Cooperators to highlight U.S. products tailored to Costa Rican food service demand at ExpHoRe - the largest trade show in Costa Rica targeting the hotel and restaurant sector.

Demand for U.S. consumer-oriented products in the Caribbean region reached $1.5 billion in 2022, a 26 percent gain compared to the previous year.

Brazil continues to offer excellent export opportunities for U.S. companies. In 2022, Brazil’s imports of consumer-oriented agricultural products were US$5.2 billion, an increase of 20 percent compared to the previous year.

Post revises down MY 2023/24 soybean production to 158.5 MMT due to poor weather outlooks resulting from El Niño, particularly in the Centre West states, which may affect final yields currently projected at 3.507 kg/ha.

Argentine imports of consumer-oriented food and beverages in 2023 are projected to remain at 2022 levels, due to continuing economic uncertainty, weak consumer spending, and the expectation of another year of high inflation.

U.S. exporters enjoy a strong position in the Honduran market, thanks to the CAFTA-DR agreement. More than 95 percent of U.S. industrial and commercial goods can enter the country duty free, with the remaining tariffs to be phased out by 2025.

U.S. exports of agricultural products to Guatemala in 2022 increased 11.2 percent from 2021, reaching $1.8 billion. The Guatemalan economy relies on foreign exchange generated by international trade, remittances, and the tourism sector.

The United States exported a record $540 million of agricultural and related products to Nicaragua in 2022, fueled largely by record-high remittances from Nicaraguan migrants.