MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Uruguay's exports post 6% yoy increase

Beef alone accounted for US$ 202 million worth of sales

Uruguay's exports last month totaled U$S 912 million, according to a report released earlier this week in Montevideo by the Uruguay XXI Institute. Beef, cellulose, dairy products, and rice were the main items behind this achievement representing a 6% yoy increase.

Beef alone accounted for US$ 202 million worth of sales, or 22% of total exports following an interannual 15% increase in value plus a 1% growth in volume.

The United States was the main destination, with purchases reaching US$ 77 million, or 38% of total sales to that country. On the other hand, China recorded a 20% drop to reach US$ 54 million while the European Union came in third with US$ 33 million (or 16% of total beef exports, which also represented a 46% increase year-on-year).

Cellulose was the second product with a 15% share for revenues worth US$ 135 million, or 9% less than in 2024 after 259,542 tons were sold abroad, mainly to the European Union (EU), where purchases quadrupled those of January 2024 reaching US$ 66 million (49% of total exports). With a 45% share, China was the second destination for this category.

Right behind were dairy products with a year-on-year increase of 2% and US$ 77 million exported, chiefly to Algeria (31% of sales, representing US$ 24 million), a 40% growth from 2024.

Brazil, with a 22% drop year-on-year, was second with purchases totaling US$ 22 million. South America's largest country represented 29% of dairy exports, followed by Mauritania's US$ 4 million worth of purchases. The main product exported in this category continued to be whole milk powder (US$ 52 million), followed by butter (US$ 9 million).

Rice exports totaled US$ 68 million, and were the fourth most exported product in 2025 after an 83% yoy growth. Costa Rica was the main destination, with a 20% share yielding US$14 million.

From an overall angle, Brazil was the main destination for Uruguay's sales abroad (18%) with shipments totaling US$ 169 million, a 6% fall from the same month the previous year.

Standing behind was China with sales worth US$ 153 million, a 24% decrease compared to 2024 due to fewer pulp sales.

The EU consolidated as a key destination for Uruguayan products (15% of all sales abroad) as transactions doubled in a yoy comparison to reach US$ 139 million. Cellulose was the main product, with beef and veal sales posting a 46% improvement to yield US$ 33 million.

Coming right behind in fourth and fifth place respectively were the United States and Argentina.