Bunge Profits Surge

NEW YORK - Jul 26/07 - SNS -- Bunge Limited reported a net income of U.S. $168 million on sales of $9.915 million during the seconde quarter ending June 30, compared to a net of $30 million on sales of $6,001 million during the same three month period last year.

This lifted net income for the first half of the current fiscal year to $182 million on sales of $18,104 million, compared to a net of $88 million on sales of $11,626 million last year.

Alberto Weisser, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer stated, "Bunge's strong second quarter earnings were driven by a good performance in agribusiness and outstanding results in our fertilizer operations. We are optimistic about the second half of 2007 and our opportunities in 2008.

"While futures prices for soybeans and grains have been volatile, industry fundamentals are solid. Demand for protein meal and vegetable oil continues to grow; however, in some cases it has been difficult to pass higher edible oil prices on to customers. We expect good global harvests, with some exceptions in Europe, and large crop plantings in South America.

"High futures prices and acreage shifts in favor of corn in the United States reflect the influence of current and expected demand from the biofuels industry. Higher prices are beneficial for farmers worldwide and are particularly important in Brazil, where they have largely offset the negative impacts of a stronger local currency and increased crop input costs. While soybean farmers in that country continue to face high debt levels and operating costs, the market is helping to return them to better levels of profitability. This has been reflected in the increased demand for fertilizer seen in the first half of this year."

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