World attention may focus on China, but Southeast Asian markets are undergoing dramatic changes that include a growing dependence on feed grain imports, reported Adel Yusupov, U.S. Grains Council regional director in Southeast Asia.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re seeing a decline in domestic crop production and burgeoning feed demand,\u00e2\u20ac\ufffd said Yusupov. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153U.S. corn exports to Southeast Asia are up almost 1,000 percent year-on-year, and regional feed millers have been sitting on the edge of their chairs watching the Chicago corn market. Feed production is up this year in every single Southeast Asian market, and millers are taking advantage of every temporary dip in the price of corn.\u00e2\u20ac\ufffd<\/p>\n
He cited growth rates ranging from three to eight percent and equally revealing data on corn imports.<\/p>\n
\u00e2\u20ac\u0153The region is expected to import a record 7.5 to 8 million metric tons (296 to 315 million bushels) of corn in 2011,\u00e2\u20ac\ufffd Yusupov said. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This is a 60 percent increase or 3 million tons (118 million bushels) more than the region\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s 2007 purchases. I believe Southeast Asia\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s growing appetite for meat and shortfalls in local production will create a corn market bigger than that of South Korea or perhaps even Mexico within a few years.\u00e2\u20ac\ufffd<\/p>\n
More specifically, he noted that Indonesia surpassed Malaysia this year as the dominant corn importer. U.S. corn sales to Indonesia reached 407,000 tons (16 million bushels) in the January-to-July period, an increase of almost 4,000 percent over the same period last year.<\/p>\n
The Council has successfully made the case to key Indonesian buyers that U.S. corn offers superior wet milling characteristics compared to local, Indian, or Argentine corn, and Council training on corn procurement and risk management has contributed to one company\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s shift from the top importer of Argentine corn to being the number one importer of U.S. corn.<\/p>\n
Trade sources indicate Indonesia could import from 2.5 to 3 million tons (99 to 118 million bushels) of corn this year. The U.S. market share is expected to reach 15 to 20 percent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
World attention may focus on China, but Southeast Asian markets are undergoing dramatic changes that include a growing dependence on feed grain imports, reported Adel Yusupov, U.S. Grains Council regional director in Southeast Asia. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153We\u00e2\u20ac\u2122re seeing a decline in domestic crop production and burgeoning feed demand,\u00e2\u20ac\ufffd said Yusupov. \u00e2\u20ac\u0153U.S. corn exports to Southeast Asia are … <\/p>\n