The president of the Chamber of the Oil Industry and the Cereal Exporters Center (Ciara-CEC), Gustavo Idígoras, remarked the “very favorable reaction” that the producers had from the validity of the Export Increase Program which established a differential exchange rate of $200 per dollar for the soybean complex, while considering that the Central Bank (BCRA) is giving “fairly favorable conditions” for exports.
“The truth is, Decree 576, which began to function on September 5, has had a very favorable reaction from producers and the entire soybean value chain,” Idígoras highlighted in dialogue with FM La Patriada.
Until this Tuesday, the agricultural sector liquidated foreign currency for an amount greater than US$ 5,130 million, exceeding the goal agreed between the Government and the sector of US$ 5,000 million for all of September, the month during which the program is in force.
“Surely we are going to continue adding more dollars in the coming days until September 30, which results in a benefit for the entire economy because the Central Bank not only strengthens its reserves but also the rest of those dollars goes to the economy to import inputs”, said the head of the exporters.
“The truth is, Decree 576, which began to operate on September 5, has had a very favorable reaction from producers and the entire soybean value chain”Gustavo Idigoras
He indicated that, between now and next March, there will be 12 million tons more to liquidate.
“As of October, the market will return to the conditions of August and a more normal flow would return,” he predicted, and reiterated his support for the measure to be temporary so that there is no “traction at prices in the domestic market” since soybean meal is used for animal feed, among other applications.
According to Idígoras, before the measure there was a position of soybean reserves of “around 22 million tons approximately”.
“The first flow that occurred was that of the cooperatives and collectors, and from then on we began to see an important flow of around 8,000 producers of varying sizes, but mainly medium and large with a certain financial capacity,” he explained, although he stated that “There were also positions of small producers.”
Settlements before the measure
Regarding the questions of those producers who had liquidated before the measure and could not access the benefits of the ‘soy dollar’, Idígoras anticipated that the Government will announce measures in the coming weeks.
“When we talk and discuss with the economic cabinet we raise this issue and the decree provides for the granting of benefits to small producers. The Ministry of Economy is already working on it and it is likely that at the end of the month or the beginning of October the corresponding announcements will be made with their respective decree, ”he asserted.
Said benefits, he pointed out, will be “substantial in relation to the current situation” and, although several options are considered, they would be linked “to production costs and the possibility of receiving tax benefits to buy inputs.”
Finally, the president of Ciara-CEC, evaluated that the exchange rate is “quite competitive if compared multilaterally.”
“The problem here is due to the expectations that the population may have about what the real value of the dollar may be, which puts pressure on it to rise, but the Central Bank is providing quite interesting conditions for all export sectors,” he concluded. Idigoras.
