Looking Ahead to the Upcoming Year in Mexico
July 18, 2018As we get ready to begin our Spring Summer Planting and Harvest Survey in Mexico next month, we wanted to look at some trends we are anticipating in the coming marketing year. Below are the Mexican Government’s (SAGARPA’s) projections for the 2018 dry bean planting cycle compared to last year:
According to our on the ground representatives in Mexico, only 94 thousand hectares were planted through May 31. Planting season traditionally starts at the end of June for dry land. Temperatures across Mexico have been unusually high and have just started to cool down. We will have a better perspective on what is happening on the ground once we begin our planting survey.
On the trade side, We are monitoring closely the fill rates for the Non NAFTA origin duty free quotas. While we have maintained our dominant market share in Mexico, we remain concerned with the use of the non NAFTA TRQ to bring in black beans from Argentina last year. While NAFTA renegotiation remains at a standstill, trade sources are talking about a resumption of talks in the next few months. A critical factor to get the talks back on track is the conclusion of the Presidential elections in Mexico and recent statements by incoming President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) that he is committed to the NAFTA renegotiation. For full details on the current Mexico market outlook please see the latest market report on our members only site.