Country News
Germany: German wheat exports fell in November while barley exports increased, reports Bloomberg News. Wheat shipments fell rom 866,437 MT valued at €243.2 million in November 2012 to 602,767 MT valued at €130.6 million in November 2013. Barley shipments rose to 237,064 MT in November 2013, which was up from 197,451 MT seen the year prior. Corn exports fell to 75,323 MT in November 2013, which was a steep drop from the 186,749 MT exported in November 2012. Corn imports fell to 288,659 MT in November 2013, which was down from 336,198 MT the year before.
Japan: The Ministry of Agriculture has announced that it will import 15,150 MT of feed wheat and 86,850 MT of feed barley from a simultaneous buy and sell auction that closed on Wednesday, according to Reuters. The ministry had sought to purchase 120,000 MT of feed wheat and 200,000 MT of barley. It will be seeking these same amounts in another auction to be held on January 29.
South Africa: Grain SA has reported that because of lows rainfall during the 2012 and 2013 planting seasons South Africa will have a corn shortfall of around 500,000 MT when the harvest begins in April, according to Bloomberg News. Stocks of yellow corn fell 18 percent to 1.33 MMT, while white corn stocks fell by 30 percent to 1.84 MMT.
Zambia: Zambia may experience its worst corn crop in three years due to inefficient fertilizer distribution and late rains, reports Bloomberg News. A government program to distribute subsidized seed and fertilizer to the small-scale farmers that account for around 80 percent of Zambian corn production has been termed a disaster that exacerbated the difficulties caused by the late rains. Shortages and increased demand across much of Africa cause prices in Zambia to rise by 35 percent in 2013 through November.