Country News
China: Ji Tao Han of New Hope Liuhe says that growth in per capita meat consumption will come from rural areas whereas urban Chinese will seek better quality meat. Jean-Yves Chow of Mizuho Bank says that corn production this year will be down by nearly 10 MMT to a total of 215 MMT, but demand for feed will also decline due to avian influenza and a slower recovery in pig numbers. Meanwhile, the FAS attaché says poultry production will be 11 MMT, down from 12.3 MMT in 2016. Chow believes total corn demand this year will be 230 MMT and not the 237 MMT forecast by USDA.
Separately, JSC researcher Takaki Shigemoto says that Dalian corn futures are the highest since April on speculation that the government will do more to spur demand and reduce inventories. (Bloomberg) China booked at least three cargoes of U.S. corn totaling 195,000 MT with delivery in late spring. (Reuters)
Iran: Oil production increased following the end of sanctions, and the improved revenues has spurred an all-time high in corn imports. Domestic Iranian corn has challenges from temperature and moisture. The increased imports are mostly helping Ukraine. (UkrAgroConsult)
Japan: Continental Rice President Nobuyuki Chino says that the small purchase (30 KMT) of Chinese corn is over. (Bloomberg)
South America: USDA, private analysts and even Brazil’s CONAB have on average tended to under-estimate the size of the corn crop in the region. The tendency to go too low in March with corn production forecasts for Brazil and Argentina lends to the view that the crops will be bigger than currently forecast. (Reuters) AgriMoney reports that CONAB has raised its estimate of the combined Brazilian corn crops to 88.969 MMT.
South Korea: Authorities have already culled 35.36 million birds (19 percent of chickens) due to avian influenza and more flocks are scheduled to be culled. (Bloomberg)
Vietnam: The government intends to impose an E5 ethanol blend requirement beginning in 2018. Two previously moth-balled plants have been reopened because current ethanol production is less than half of the 7.5 million tons of ethanol needed to meet the requirement. (Biofuels Digest)