Australian grain prices moved sharply higher in the past week as domestic buyers step up efforts to secure old crop supplies.
Complacency over expected ample old crop grain supplies in WA and Victoria disappeared after the Australian dollar plummeted by more than 10 per cent in late March. The lower currency made Australian wheat and barley attractive into overseas markets and triggered a swath of exporter sales.
Several cargoes of barley were sold into China and traders expect wheat business has also been concluded. Buyers are worried that China could be in the market to buy more Australian grain.
China has also been a large buyer of US corn, sorghum and wheat in the past couple of weeks.
Although the Australian dollar rallied more than 5 cents last week to about 62 US cents, grain prices surged higher. Domestic users are nervous about how much grain has been sold into export markets in the past 10 days and how this may affect available supplies in the coming months.
Stockfeed wheat and barley prices for an April delivery into the Darling Downs rallied by $15 to $25 a tonne. Stockfeed wheat prices jumped $25 to $480 with barley up $15 to $410.
Southern grain markets also surged higher last week on the reported export business and an absence of farmer selling. Melbourne wheat bids jumped $15 to around $400 with barley up to $320. Prices were also sharply higher into other feed grain demand hotspots of Murray Bridge in SA and Griffith in southern NSW.
News that Russia will restrict grain exports in the coming months before the new crop winter crop harvest in July was also supportive for global wheat and barley prices. Russia said it would limit grain exports, comprising wheat, barley and corn, to 7 million tonnes from April to June.
Ukraine also flagged it may move to cap wheat exports for the remainder of the season after the flour millers said they could run short of supplies.
Scattered rain across NSW in the past week continues to build soil moisture reserves before a general start to winter crop planting in mid to late April. Rainfall totals ranged from 15mm to 30mm across northern NSW. Additional rain is forecast this week.
