Darling Downs grain markets were steady to softer over the past week as harvest kicks off in south eastern Australia.
Feed barley values fell $5 to $370 delivered into Darling Downs destinations while stockfeed wheat was steady at $410 delivered.
Sorghum prices remain well supported at $375 to $380 delivered into the Downs markets as prospects for the 2020 harvest continue to slide with the ongoing dry weather.
Southern Queensland and northern NSW farmers need a major rain event of 80mm or more if they plant sorghum in the next six to eight weeks. Northern feed grain users will be forced to rely more heavily on wheat and barley in the event of a depleted 2020 sorghum crop.
Australia's 2019 grain harvest remains in its early stages, but early yields have been coming in better than some of the most pessimistic forecasts.
Southern NSW started barley harvest last week where yields are coming in slightly better than expected. Farmers around Griffith, Hillston and Ardlethan reporting yields of 1.2 to 2 tonnes a hectare. Wheat harvest will commence later this week.
Southern NSW barley prices fell $10 in the past week to $290 on farm as more supplies come to market. Wheat prices were holding at $330 to $340 a tonne on farm in southern NSW. Farmers have been reluctant sellers with prices $80 to $100 a tonne below last year's levels.
Expectations of good crops across most of Victoria and the south eastern parts of South Australia continues to weigh on east coast grain prices, particularly barley.
Results of the recent GIAV crop tour of Victoria highlighted that southern crops have largely escaped the northern drought conditions.
The crop tour participants travelled over 12,300km and inspected 344 paddocks of wheat, barley and canola across Victoria and southern NSW.
It's the four year the GIAV has undertaken the crop tour. The 2019 average wheat yields of 2.3 tonnes/ha and barley at 3.3t/ha, which were 115pc and 133pc higher than last year.
Western Australia's 2019 harvest is also exceeding expectations following one of the hardest finishes in several year's. In its October crop report, the Grain Industry Association of WA said early yields were coming in better than expected.
They forecast the WA wheat harvest at 6.2 million tonnes down from 10.1 million tonnes last year. State barley production was forecast at 4.0 million tonnes compared to 5.1 million tonnes in 2018.
