Strong demand for Brazilian beef, especially from the U.S. and China, is expected to offset rising cattle prices in the medium term, preserving beefpackers’ margins, according to executives at Minerva, South America’s major beef exporter.
Cattle prices in Brazil have risen by about 50% in less than two months, raising analysts’ concerns on profit margins in the industry.
In the third quarter, Minerva reported a record EBITDA of 813 million reais ($140 million), but the EBITDA margin dropped by 0.5 percentage points year-over-year to 9.6%.
