The detailed point ofmarket analysis of the Spanish olive oil sector indicates a situation of strong production recovery thanks to the late harvest, and therefore very high yields, in the months of February, March and April.
According to the Cooperativas agro-alimentarias de Espana, the production of virgin olive oils, mainly lampante and some virgin, in April was 81 thousand tons, a record considering the period.
The risk taken by olive growers in delaying the harvest to obtain more oil from olives is therefore evident, also considering the high prices of virgin and lampante oil. Above 7 euros/kg, the profit margins in producing lampante are much higher than those of extra virgin olive oil at 8 euros/kg, despite the olive drop but considering the lowering of harvesting costs and the much higher yields ( even over 30% in April).
The limited availability of olive oils has made the production of virgin and lampante very attractive, with good sales performances especially on the domestic market.
According to data from the Cooperatives agro Alimentarios, cumulative sales of Spanish olive oils in April amounted to 667 thousand tonnes. Much of what was sold, especially at the beginning of the olive oil campaign, was old oil and this can also be deduced from the lower commercial flow from the mills which, in the same period, was 550 thousand tonnes. It was therefore the bottlers who ran out of supplies and then started purchasing again.
Going on to analyze the data on the Spanish olive oil trade, we note that exports continue to account for the lion’s share, with 65 thousand tonnes exported in April against 38 thousand tonnes of internal consumption.
The figure of downward speculation by Spanish bottlers in April is also confirmed, as they lowered their stocks by only 8 thousand tons (176 thousand available) against purchases of 73 thousand tons from mills.
Knowing full well of the liquidity difficulties of the cooperatives, which had to pay loans and liquidate part of the members’ contributions, they made large purchases at 50-60 cents less than the current price, replenishing their stocks.
Total inventories at the end of April are 576,889 tonnes, 82,400 tonnes less than in March.
