Argentina raises export duties on soybean oil and flour from 31 to 33%

Argentina raises export duties on soybean oil and flour from 31 to 33% = (Video) = Buenos Aires, 19 Mar 2022 (AFP) - Argentina, the world's leading supplier of soybean oil and flour, raised export duties on these products from 31 to 33%, but will not increase taxes on foreign sales of wheat, soybeans, corn and corn oil, announced this Saturday the Ministry of Agriculture. The Argentine government ordered “the suspension temporary of the 2-point spread of export duties on soybean meal and oil. This suspension will bring them back (from 31%) to 33%,” Agriculture Minister Julián Domínguez announced at a press conference. Last Monday, Argentina had decided to temporarily suspend exports of soybean meal and oil, amid the escalation of raw material prices in the international market. export duties at the level prior to October 2020, when companies in the sector benefited, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.This measure “reaches 11 companies exporting soy by-products, of which eight firms account for 95% of total exports” but does not affect producers, who “already discount 33%,” the minister specified.According to 2021 data, soybean meal was the main export product of the South American country (14.2%) and soybean oil the third (6.9%) .The soybean complex accounted for 30% of Argentine exports in 2021 and contributed about 9 billion dollars in export taxes to the tax authorities. - Price of wheat -Domínguez also referred to the creation of a Temporary Wheat Stabilization Fund, published this Saturday in the Official Gazette, which will be administered by the Ministry of Internal Trade, not under the Ministry of Agriculture. The government seeks to “stabilize the price of wheat at pre-war values and decouple the price Argentina's international prices,” Dominguez said, arguing that the value of cereal increased 37% as a result of the war in Ukraine.Dominguez clarified that the government “will not touch withholdings on corn, wheat, soybeans and corn oil,” considering that every time those taxes were increased, “Argentina fell on its intent to level The measures are part of the decision announced by President Alberto Fernández to wage a strong fight against inflation, which exceeds 50% in the last 12 months, after congressional approval of a debt refinancing agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for about $45 billion. Domínguez, the government has two objectives: “to try to take care of consumers and not to harm Argentine producers.” We are working to give the goose of golden eggs that is the Argentine producer, the predictability and confidence it requires,” he added. In this context, it was decided to “open export records for a total of eight million tons of wheat, which add up to two million” in search of making the 2022-2023 harvest a new record, he stressed. In this way, producers, hitherto critical of the government, are sought to benefit from high prices Argentina, among the world's leading food producers, benefits from the international rise in the price of raw materials. But strong demand puts pressure on domestic food prices, one of the items that has the greatest impact on inflation, which was 50.9% last year.ls/llu