Wheat Imports Restricted
The Western Producer – 10/31/2019
One of Canada’s biggest competitors in the wheat export business has lost a key market. UkrAgroConsult is reporting that Russia has stopped issuing phytosanitary certificates for wheat destined for Vietnam at the behest of Vietnam due to the discovery of thistle seeds in a Russian wheat cargo. Vietnam was the third-biggest buyer of Russian wheat in 2017-18. Sales plummeted 43 percent to 1.2 million tonnes in 2018-19, according to UkrAgroConsult. They are down a further 53 percent during the first three months of 2019-20 compared to the same period a year ago. Bruce Burnett, grain industry analyst with MarketsFarm, believes Vietnam is erecting a phytosanitary barrier to trade. Russia exports mainly feed wheat to Vietnam and feed demand has been falling in that country and is forecast to drop even more with the discovery of African swine fever in the country.
Too Wet Too Dry: Wheat Season Gets Off to a Mixed Start
Bloomberg – 11/01/2019
While British grain growers hope for a dry spell to speed up planting in rain-saturated fields, newly-sown farms on the other end of the continent in Ukraine are in need of a good soak before winter.
The winter-grain planting period is drawing to a close across the Northern Hemisphere, and young crops across some of the world’s top exporters face a mixed bag of conditions. Excess rain is slowing planting in parts of western Europe, while the east has seen too little — as have the U.S. Plains. Powerhouse Russia, meanwhile, got off to a good start. After sowing, wheat and barley will lie dormant as frigid temperatures set in, and the yields will ultimately be determined by spring weather. For now, here’s a roundup of conditions as the growing season for 2020-21 crops kicks off:
The US Can Sell Billions More in Ag to China
Agri-Pulse – 10/30/2019
President Donald Trump and White House officials insist that China will be buying $40 billion to 50 billion worth of U.S. agricultural products annually over the next couple of years, if the countries nail down a trade deal in the coming weeks. Now, ag industry leaders are looking at the feasibility for U.S. farmers, processors and exporters to meet that challenge. No details have been released for the “phase one” deal that’s expected to be signed in mid-November on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation meeting in Chile. But it’s possible to significantly increase sales to China if the agreement puts the U.S. on an even footing with competing nations by lowering tariffs and non-tariff barriers, industry officials tell Agri-Pulse.
Our View: USMCA Secures Win for Wheat, Advances for Agriculture
National Association of Wheat Growers – 10/31/2019
For more than a year, Congress has been considering the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA). The time for deliberation is over; it’s harvest time for USMCA. But it’s not enough to hope that Congress passes USMCA before the opportunity disappears. NAWG has been on the front lines of advocating for the fair trade of U.S. farm products and educating Congress on the benefits of USMCA for not just wheat growers, but all America. That educational campaign continued this morning on Capitol Hill at an event hosted by Agri-Pulse for members of Congress and their staff. Joined by commodity leaders and Congressman Jim Costa, Chairman of the House Agriculture Committee’s Subcommittee on Livestock and Foreign Agriculture, I called on Congress to pass USMCA in order to secure its benefits for U.S. agriculture. USMCA is a critical trade agreement for America’s farmers and ranchers and will likely remain the most important trade deal for wheat growers for several years to come.
US Wheat Net Export Sales Up 88% on Week on Bookings from Japan, Philippines
S&P Global – 10/31/2019
US net export sales of wheat in the week to October 24 rose 88.1% week on week to 493,761 mt, led by large bookings from Japan and the Philippines, US Department of Agriculture data showed Thursday. Wheat export sales were in line with market expectations, according to analysts, who had expected sales to be in a range of 200,000-500,000 mt. For the 2019-20 marketing season, the Philippines and Japan are the second- and third-largest buyers of US wheat, respectively, after Mexico. The 2019-20 marketing year for US wheat started from June 1 and will run through May 31, 2020. In the week ended October 24, net export sales to Japan were 117,700 mt. The Philippines contracted 112,000 mt of US wheat in the same period. Physical wheat exports — those which have been shipped from the US — saw a decline, falling 15.1% week on week to 422,486 mt, according to the USDA report. The top destination for physical wheat exports was Mexico, followed by Japan and Taiwan.
Source: U.S. Wheat Associates