EN 
PT_BR 
According to data from Itaú BBA Agro Consulting, in March, the cereal registered an increase in value both on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) and in the Brazilian market. Abroad, the advance was mainly sustained by the rise in oil prices, which improves the profitability of ethanol plants in the United States, in addition to geopolitical uncertainties and concerns about input costs and risks to the 2026/27 American harvest. On a monthly average, corn in Chicago rose 5.3%, reaching US$ 4.53 per bushel.
At the beginning of April, however, the scenario changed. The fall in oil prices, influenced by signs of reduced tensions between the United States and Iran, reduced the competitiveness of ethanol and put pressure on corn prices. On average, during the first half of the month, the price fell 0.5%, to US$ 4.50 per bushel.
Photo: Jaelson Lucas/AEN
In Brazil, the upward movement in March followed the international market, but also reflected internal factors, such as the delay in planting the second crop in some regions, the lower supply from producers focused on harvesting the summer crop, and logistical concerns related to the increase in diesel and freight costs. In Campinas, corn rose by 4.4%, reaching R$ 71 per sack.
Already in April, prices began to decline with the progress of the first harvest, improved weather conditions for the second harvest, and the fall of the dollar. The appreciation of the real reduced export parity, discouraging business at ports and increasing caution among domestic buyers, many of whom were already well-stocked. In the first half of the month, prices in Campinas fell back below R$ 70 per sack.
So far, the second crop is developing positively in the main producing regions. Recent rains have helped alleviate water stress in areas of western Paraná. Currently, most crops are in the vegetative development phase, while almost a third, concentrated in Mato Grosso, have already entered the flowering phase, a period of greater water demand.
