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Tahiti lime quotes dropped sharply in the first fortnight of December in Brazil, pressed down by higher supply of small-sized fruits. Some batches were traded below 20.00 BRL per 27-kilo box. Between December 1 and 15, tahiti lime quotes averaged 23.37 BRL per 27-kilo box, harvested, a staggering 66% down compared to the same period in November.
In November, tahiti prices dropped 27%, interrupting the upward trend of quotes observed since July. Still, price levels continued high, with the average at 58.45 BRL per box last month.
According to Cepea collaborators, higher supply of small-sized fruits has been driving purchasers away from the in natura market since mid-November. Limited availability of high-quality tahiti lime, in turn, may be linked to the harvesting advance in November. Concerned with new price drops in December, Brazilian growers anticipated by one month trades of the fruits that would be ready in early December, to take advantage of the high values.
Rains in Brazilian citrus regions are expected to contribute for fruits growth and supply increase. If rains forecasts are confirmed, tahiti lime availability may increase from the second fortnight of December onward, intensifying in January, period of crop peak. In general, expectations are positive regarding volume in the 2017 crop, once weather this year has been favorable, compared to 2015.
Regarding exportations, Brazilian shipments of orange juice weakened in the first fifteen days of December, reinforcing the initial expectations from the sector for low shipments in the 2016/17 crop, due to lower production and estimates for empty inventories at the end of the season. According to Fundecitrus (Citrus Defense Fund), juice production this crop may be 18.8% below that in the 2015/16 crop.
From July/16 to November/16, exportations of FCOJ equivalent totaled 421.68 thousand tons, 4% lower than the volume shipped in the same period of 2015, according to Secex (Foreign Trade Secretariat). Revenue totaled 721.89 million USD, 1% up compared to last season. In Real, the total was 2.3 billion BRL, 10% down in the period.
Source: Hortifruti/Cepea
