Trump’s trade shifts put Brazil back in agriculture game

Bloomberg

Brazil’s agriculture minister expects that rising protectionism in the US will create “many opportunities” for his country’s industry, including increased trade with Mexico.
Mexico’s representatives will discuss the possibility of importing soybean and beef from Brazil in a meeting with local farmers and industry members later this month, Blairo Maggi said at an event in Sao Paulo.
“Brazil is back in the game,” said Maggi, whose family owns one of Brazil’s largest soybean companies, Grupo Amaggi. US President Donald Trump’s decision to exit the Trans-Pacific Partnership is also seen as an opportunity for Brazil to increase agricultural trades with Asian countries, Maggi said.
Brazil is the world’s biggest shipper of soybeans, coffee, sugar and orange juice. The country is also the largest exporter of beef and chicken and No. 2 for corn. Still, export volumes to Mexico have room to expand. Last year, Brazil shipped 38.6 million metric tons of the oilseed to China and a mere 129,000 tons to Mexico. A majority of Mexico’s agricultural imports come from the US Mexico, the world’s third-biggest importer of soybeans, ranks second-largest in corn.
Trump told lawmakers last week he wants to
accelerate renegotiations for the North American Free Trade Agreement while Mexico’s Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo said he’ll start talks as soon as the US is ready.