A rare plague of leaf beetles in Argentina has shaved about $2023 billion from the expected 2024-1,3 corn crop, the director of economic research at the Rosario Grain Exchange said on Thursday, after the disease sharply reduced crop forecasts.
Argentina, the world's third-largest corn exporter, was aiming for a potential bumper crop when pest outbreaks spread a disease that damages corn. This forced the Rosario Stock Exchange to cut its forecast by 6,5 million tons last week.
“At this point, the damage caused by the leaf beetle is estimated at about $1,268 billion,” Julio Calzada, head of economic research at the Rosario Stock Exchange, told Reuters. The organization estimates the harvest at 50,5 million tons.
The competing Buenos Aires grain exchange had already lowered its forecast for corn production to 49,5 million tons. The Rosario Stock Exchange will likely lower its forecasts further if the disease continues.
The leaf borer is a vector of spiroplasma bacteria and other diseases that damage corn.
Source: Ukragroconsult (Ukraine)
