UK wheat imports continue to fascinate the global grain markets. UK,
usually a net exporter of wheat, imported 255,785 tonnes of the grain in
April, taking total buy-ins to 2.38m tonnes in first ten months of the
crop year (July-June), far exceeding outward shipments of less than
609,000 tonnes. Last month, the UK lifted its estimate for wheat imports
following poor weather which has boosted demand for the grain, besides
cutting yields last year to a 20-year low. The UK farm ministry, Defra,
upgraded its forecast for UK wheat imports in 2012-13 by 275,000 tonnes
to 2.54m tonnes- marking a rise of 10%.
The upgraded figure is
far bigger than exports, which Defra pegged at 800,000 tonnes in its
official forecast. The upward estimates also reaffirmed the UK's unusual
slip into net imports of wheat. The estimate for feed use, however, was
raised, by 229,000 tonnes to 6.69m tonnes, reflecting the lingering
impact from the poor weather last year, the UK's second wettest on
record, in boosting demand besides lowering yields.
The wet
summer/autumn and delayed spring have necessitated an increase in the
use of grain for animal feed in place of forage and grazing, Defra
noted. The continuation of the poor weather into a cold spring has also
prompted by stockpiling, over fears of a late harvest and delayed
new-crop supplies. Commercial end-season stocks were seen soaring 29% to
1.94m tonnes as of the end of 2012-13, in part thanks to uncertainty
over the approaching 2013 harvest, according to Defra.
Source by Commodity Insights
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