Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for waiting. At this time, we would like to welcome everyone to SLC Agrícola, second quarter of 2018 earnings conference call. Today we have with us Mr. Aurélio Pavinato, CEO, and Mr. Ivo Marcon Brum, CFO and Investor Relations Officer. We would like to inform you this event is being recorded, and all participants will be in a listen-only mode during the company's presentation. After the company's remarks are completed, there will be a question-and-answer section.
At that time, further instructions will be given. Should any participant need assistance during this call, please press star zero to reach the operator. Also, today's live webcast, both audio and live show, may be accessed through SLC Agrícola website at www.slcagricola.com.br in the Investor Relations section by clicking on the banner "Webcast 2 Q 2018." The following presentation is also available to download on the webcast platform. The following information is available in thousands of Brazilian real and in IFRS, except when otherwise indicated. Before proceeding, let me mention that forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs and assumptions of SLC Agrícola management and on information currently available to the company.
They involve risks, uncertainties, and assumptions because they relate to future events and therefore depend on circumstances that may or may not occur in the future. Investors should understand that general economic conditions, industry conditions, and other operating factors could also affect the future results of the company and could cause results to differ materially from those expressed in such forward-looking statements. Now, I'll turn the conference over to Mr. Aurélio Pavinato, CEO. Mr. Pavinato, you may proceed.
Good morning. Thank you for participating in SLC Agrícola's earnings conference call for the second quarter of 2018. Let's start with slide three, please. The results for the second quarter of 2018 once again reflect the consolidation of our current strategy, one pillar of which concentrates on improving the efficiency of our business.
In addition to the excellent results obtained in the soybean harvest, which registered a yield of 3,756 kg per hectare, up 14% year-over-year, and in cotton, whose partial harvest is now 2/3 completely harvested, led us to revise upward our cotton lint yield estimate to 1,787 kg per hectare, which is 7% higher than our initial forecast, 18% higher than the five-year average to the 2015-2016 crop year, and in line with the record we set last year.
In other words, for the second straight year, we are delivering yields at a whole new level and well above our initial forecast. Let's turn to slide five, where we will begin our comments on the recent price variation in our main products and the short-term price outlook. During 2018, cotton spot prices on ICE have been rising 10% from the initial days of the year and 20% compared to the same period last year.
According to the USDA forecast published on Friday, world cotton consumption in the 2018-2019 crop year should reach the mark of 127.6 million bales, which would represent a new record and surpass the record of 123 million bales set in 2007-2008. In comparison with a world production of 120 million bales, meaning a reduction of inventory of 7 million bales.
With regard to China, the world's largest cotton consumer, the USDA supply and demand report for July, as you can see on slide six, presented revisions to historical data for the country's consumption and ending stocks, which contributes to the optimistic scenario, as well as to downward revisions of world cotton fiber stocks. Another important factor is the concern with the cotton crop in the United States.
As we mentioned in the earnings conference call for the first quarter, the drought in Texas, which is the country's main cotton-producing region, is having severe impacts, which have led the USDA to project a cotton abandonment rate of 25% in its latest report. As a result, the U.S. cotton crop should amount to 19.2 million bales, around 8% smaller than last crop year.
In the case of soybean, whose price chart is on slide seven, you can see that quotes in the Chicago Board of Trade were adversely affected by developments in the ongoing trade war between the United States and China, which led the leader to impose an additional tariff of 25% on U.S. soybean imports. Another factor affecting soybean prices was the good conditions of the U.S. crop for this year. However, as the chart also shows, soybean prices in Brazil have not fallen since the market has put Brazilian soybean at parity with U.S. soybean, which will incur the additional tariff.
Turning to slide eight, corn prices also have fallen in recent months in Chicago due to the decline in soybean prices, as well as the crop good conditions in the United States, which is the main producer of this commodity. However, at the global level, corn consumption should exceed supply for the second straight year. According to the latest USDA data, this deficit should amount to 37 million tons in the 2018-2019 cycle.
In Brazil's domestic market, however, the scenario is totally different. Corn prices in Brazil have remained above BRL 40 per bag in Campinas. The combination of a contraction in planted area for the first corn crop in Brazil and the consolidation of a crop shortfall in regions producing a second crop in the country's south, led mainly by the state of Paraná, are factors that helped to keep prices stable in the domestic market during 2018. According to CONAB, corn production should be 15% lower than in the 2016-2017 crop year. I will now pass the call over to my colleague Ivo Brum, our CFO and IRO, who will comment on our financial results in the period.
Good morning, everyone. Let's go to slide 10, which shows some highlights from our income statement for the period. Our net revenue posted year-over-year growth of 35% in the quarter and 28% in the year-to-date, supported mainly by the higher cotton and soybean volumes invoiced and by the better cotton prices in the period.
Another important factor was the determination of the fair value of the biological assets of BRL 288 million in the second quarter, which reflects the gross margin expectation for most of the cotton fields, already incorporating the excellent yield being achieved in the harvest that is ongoing. Adjusted EBITDA in the quarter came to BRL 158.8 million, more than double of EBITDA delivered in the first quarter of 2017, and with a margin loss of 34%.
The result also briefly reflects the higher volume of the cotton and soybean invoiced in the quarter and the better unit margin for both crops, mainly due to the lower unit cost given the better yields. In the year-to-date, adjusted EBITDA was BRL 309 million, or 56.8% higher than in the same period last crop year.
Net income was BRL 168 million in the quarter and BRL 337 million in the year-to-date, reflecting the higher volume invoiced and the higher margins, as mentioned earlier, and the determination of the fair value of the biological assets. Turning to slide 11, you can see details of our debt, with the ratio of the net debt/EBITDA in the last 12 months standing at 1.3x , which is a very comfortable level. I will now pass the call back over to Pavinato, who will comment on the outlook for the rest of the crop year and the coming crop year.
Thank you, Ivo. Given the good progress of our cotton harvest, we have already practically concluded the crop year. As you can see on the table of hedge position on slide 13, with most sales already made, supporting the expectation that the level of operating margins achieved in the first half of the year will be maintained through the rest of the year.
Lastly, on slide 14, you can see a table of our initial guidance for planted area in the 2018-2019 crop year of 455,000 hectares, or 12.8% larger than last crop year, which already incorporates the Pantanal farm whose lease was announced to the market on May 28th. I also should highlight in the table the expansion plans for the cotton crop of 29% year-over-year for a total planted area of 121,000 hectares. Thank you. Let's now open the call for questions and answers.
Ladies and gentlemen, we will now initiate the question-and-answer session. If you would like to ask a question, please dial star one. If at any point your question has been answered, you may remove your question from the Q&A by pressing the pound. Thank you. This does conclude today's presentation. You may disconnect your line at this time and have a nice day.