MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguay's foreign trade plummets in first half of 2025

Positive contributions from corn, wheat, and rice were not enough to offset the soybean downturn

Paraguay's total exports in the first half of 2025 saw a 7.6% decline, totaling US$7.83 billion compared to US$8.47 billion in the same period last year, according to a report from the Central Bank of Paraguay (BCP) released Friday in Asunción, which thus showed a trade deficit of US697.9 million, a significant shift from the US$469 million surplus recorded in June 2024.

The primary driver of the export decline was a 24.3% decrease in primary products, totaling US$1.875 billion, with soybean exports falling by 15.3% and significantly impacting overall figures. Positive contributions from corn, wheat, and rice were not enough to offset the soybean downturn. Fuel and energy exports also dropped by 8.9% to US$571 million.

Conversely, beef exports surged by 34.9%, reaching US$1.033 billion, and agricultural manufactures (MOA) increased by 9.0% to US$2.197 billion due to higher shipments of beef and offal. Industrial manufactured goods also saw a modest increase of 2.4%, reaching US$822.4 million, driven by higher exports of yarns, cables, and aluminum products.

While exports fell, total imports rose by 6.6% to US$8.5285 billion. Overall foreign trade transactions for the first half of 2025 amounted to US$16.3591 billion, a slight decrease of 0.7% compared to the previous year. Argentina remains the primary destination for Paraguay's soybeans, accounting for 87.6% of total soybean exports.

Argentina remained the main destination for soybeans, accounting for 87.6% of the total value exported, followed by Brazil, with a 9.0% share.