Brazil's exports of soybeans and meal continued to chug along at a rapid clip in July, defying the supbar 2012 harvest and leaving the country with very little to ship abroad during the remaining five months of the year.

Brazil exported 4.13 million metric tons of soybeans last month, up more than 10% from July 2011, according to Trade Ministry data released Wednesday. Soymeal exports surged nearly 31% on the year to 1.54 million tons.

While the figures were boosted by the fact that July 2012 had one more working day than in the previous year, they took another significant bite out of Brazil's soy stocks following record exports in the first half of the year. The South American country is the world's No. 2 soybean producer and exporter, after the U.S.

From January through June, Brazil shipped abroad 22.92 million tons of soybeans and 7.08 million tons of soymeal, according to consolidated Trade Ministry data.

But with this year's crop severely dented by a drought in southern states, Brazilian government food-supply agency Conab forecasts soybean exports for the full year at just 31.1 million tons, while soymeal exports are seen at 13.58 million tons. By those numbers, the country already has shipped around 87% of its expected soybean exports and 64% of its soymeal exports for 2012.

"We practically don't have any sobeans left to export," said Leonardo Amazonas, an analyst at Conab.

Conab estimates Brazil's drought-hampered 2011-12 soybean production at 66.37 million tons, about 12% lower than last year. Given export forecasts, the country likely will draw from its opening stocks to meet this year's expected domestic-consumption needs.

Costs, particularly for soymeal, already are skyrocketing, making feed more expensive for meat producers and prompting calls for Brazil to stop exporting its soy. According to consulting firm Celeres, one ton of soymeal in Sao Paulo state now goes for around 1,370 Brazilian reais ($670.58), compared with BRL560 a year ago.

Some analysts have speculated that Brazil eventually may need to import soy from neighboring Argentina or Paraguay--or even more surprisingly, the U.S.

Fabio Trigueirinho, president of soy industry association Abiove, said in an interview last week that it won't be clear until September or October.

Flavio Roberto de Franca, a soy analyst at Safras & Mercado, said prices for both raw soybeans and soymeal are still lower in Brazil than in Argentina or the U.S., so there's not yet an arbitrage opportunity to be seized by importing soy.

"We can't yet pinpoint the volumes out there," he said. "All we can say now is that stocks are going to be very narrow at the end of the year."

Write to Paul Kiernan at paul.kiernan@dowjones.com

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