By Karl Plume CHICAGO (Reuters) -Grain trader and processor Bunge Global said on Wednesday its first-quarter profit fell less than expected as rising global trade tensions prompted consumers to secure goods ahead of tariff-fueled price increases, increasing demand. Weak oilseed crush margins in North America and Argentina and lower returns in ocean freight operations dampened […]
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Bunge posts Q1 profit beat as tariff-fueled uncertainty lifts demand
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By Karl Plume
CHICAGO (Reuters) -Grain trader and processor Bunge Global said on Wednesday its first-quarter profit fell less than expected as rising global trade tensions prompted consumers to secure goods ahead of tariff-fueled price increases, increasing demand.
Weak oilseed crush margins in North America and Argentina and lower returns in ocean freight operations dampened earnings as the company turned in its lowest first-quarter result in five years.
“The first quarter exceeded our expectations, driven in part by some pull forward of activity from Q2 into Q1,” said CEO Greg Heckman. “Shifting trade dynamics, including tariffs and regulatory uncertainty, prompted some farmers and consumers to act ahead of potential changes.”
Bunge shares at midday were down 1.8% at $76.72.
Trade tensions stoked by U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs have disrupted trade flows and created headwinds for Bunge and agribusiness peers including Archer-Daniels-Midland and Cargill. The companies have already seen profits erode in recent quarters due to ample global crop supplies and thinning margins.
The challenges come as Bunge is waiting on regulatory approvals from China before it can close a long-delayed deal to acquire grain handler Viterra.
Adjusted earnings in Bunge’s agribusiness segment, its largest in revenue and sales, fell 45% in the quarter, largely due to a steep drop in processing returns. Its refined & specialty oils and milling segments saw earnings drop 40% and 46%, respectively.
Bunge reaffirmed its prior 2025 earnings guidance of an adjusted $7.75 per share, but said its agribusiness outlook would be weaker than previously expected. If realized, it would be Bunge’s worst annual profit since 2019, according to LSEG data.
“Bunge appears to have benefited from a pull-forward in activity as farmers and consumers sought to get ahead of tariffs. We expect Q2 results to be sequentially weaker, particularly in Bunge’s largest segment, agribusiness,” said Arun Sundaram, senior equity analyst at CFRA Research.
Missouri-based Bunge posted an adjusted profit of $1.81 per share for the three months ended March 31, down from $3.04 in the same period a year ago, but above analysts’ average estimate of $1.30 per share, according to LSEG data.
Rival ADM on Tuesday reported its lowest first-quarter profit in five years and lowered its 2025 outlook amid the trade policy uncertainty.
(Reporting by Karl Plume in Chicago. Additional repotring by Pooja Menon in Bengaluru. Editing by Pooja Desai, Mark Potter, Hugh Lawson and Cynthia Osterman)