Argentine agro-exports near $32 billion; key sectors show strong growth

Argentine agro-industrial exports surged to $31.952 billion in the first seven months of 2026, marking a significant 14.9% increase compared to the same period last year. This growth, amounting to an additional $4.137 billion, was primarily driven by strong performance in the sunflower, beef and leather, and wheat sectors, according to a report by the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange for the Argentine Agribusiness Council.

The sunflower complex emerged as the leading contributor, generating $2.419 billion in exports. This represents a substantial absolute increase of approximately $1.210 billion. Exports of sunflower seeds, excluding those for sowing, surged by 1146.7% year-on-year to nearly 1.25 million tons. Additionally, processed sunflower products saw considerable growth, with tonnages of cakes, flours, and pellets increasing by 54.1%, and crude sunflower oil by 42.4%. Crude sunflower oil alone accounted for 58.7% of the complex's export value.

The beef and leather sector also demonstrated robust growth, accumulating $2.999 billion in exports, a 39.9% year-on-year increase. This sector contributed an additional $854.7 million and represented 9.4% of total agro-industrial exports during the period. Both frozen and fresh/refrigerated boneless beef saw increases in volume and significant rises in average unit prices, with frozen boneless beef's average price climbing from $5,418 to $6,835 per ton.

Wheat exports also played a crucial role, reaching $2.603 billion in the first seven months, a 37% increase over the previous year, adding about $703 million. Despite a slight decrease in average price per ton from $227 to $212, the volume of wheat and meslin (excluding durum and seed) exported rose by 52.5% to 11.58 million tons. The corn complex followed with $5.269 billion in sales, a 12.3% year-on-year increase, with corn grain accounting for 98.6% of the complex's exports.