The government says Brazil will produce less soybeans next year because of the credit crunch brought on by the global economic crisis, the Associated Press reported.
The Agriculture Ministry says in a report released Thursday that the world's No. 2 producer of soybeans will harvest between 58.4 and 59.3 million metric tons, compared to this year's crop of 60 million metric tons.
The ministry also forecast that average soybean yields will drop 1.6 percent, coming in at 2.8 tons per hectare ( 2.47 acres).
The report said the drop in soybean output was mainly due to "tighter credit conditions caused by the climate of uncertainty resulting from the international crisis."