Soybean prices in Ukraine continue to rise, but export demand is declining

Domestic soybean prices in Ukraine continue to rise, but export demand remains limited and is formed mainly by small batches from EU buyers on the western border.

Ukrainian processors are actively purchasing soybeans, trying to load production capacities against the backdrop of further increases in sunflower prices and a decrease in sunflower oil processing margins.

Over the past week, purchase prices for GM soybeans increased by another 200–300 UAH/t — to 21,700–22,000 UAH/t ($430–440/t excluding VAT) with delivery to the factory, while prices for non-GM soybeans reached 22,000–22,500 UAH/t with delivery to the factory.

Demand for GM soybeans delivered to ports is practically non-existent, as traders have already closed the main procurement programs. At the same time, active demand for non-GM soybeans remains at the level of $465–470/t delivered to ports. Demand prices for non-GM soybeans delivered to the western border increased by $5/t to $475/t during the week.

Soybean exports from Ukraine in April amounted to only 158.5 thousand tons, and in total since the beginning of the season reached 1.65 million tons. Given the slowdown in export rates at the end of the season, shipment volumes are unlikely to exceed 2 million tons, so Ukrainian processors can process up to 3 million tons of soybeans in the current season.

South America continues to actively saturate the world market with offers of soybeans and soybean meal, which puts pressure on export prices in Ukraine, as Brazilian soybeans are already actively competing with Ukrainian soybeans in the EU and Turkish markets.

Soybean exports from Brazil in April reached a historic high of 16.75 million tons, which is 2.2 million tons more than in March and 1.5 million tons more than in April 2025. The largest buyer of Brazilian soybeans remained China, which imported 11.6 million tons in April compared to 9.85 million tons in March, which is 0.8 million tons more than a year earlier.

Brazil also increased soybean supplies to Turkey (+0.28 million tons), the EU-27 (+0.24 million tons) and North Africa. In total, since the beginning of 2026, Brazil has exported 40.24 million tons of soybeans compared to 37.43 million tons in January-April 2025. Of this volume, 27.61 million tons were delivered to China (versus 27.69 million tons last year), and 3.21 million tons to the EU (versus 2.34 million tons a year earlier).

Tags: Ukraine, prices, soybean