Country News
Africa: The FAO is predicting that the corn harvest for southern Africa is likely to fall by 26 percent from 2014 totals due to erratic precipitation, according to Bloomberg News. Corn production for the region is forecast at 21.1 MMT, which is 15 percent below the five-year average. South Africa, the continent’s largest corn producer, has been particularly hard hit by drought this year and is expecting a 32 percent reduction in its 2015 harvest. South African corn imports for this year through April 30 are expected to increase to 1.8 MMT, which is twice the amount imported last year and a third higher than average.
Argentina: The grain hub of Rosario was shut down this week as port-worker unions are striking to receive higher wages, according to Reuters. These strikes have threatened to slow Argentine grain exports should they persist without resolution. This action has caused all 25 ports that make up the Gran Rosario hub to shut down. Workers have threatened to strike indefinitely if a deal is not reached by Monday night.
Indonesia: Indonesia is set to reduce its corn imports to 3 MMT, which is down slightly from 3.1 MMT last year, in an effort by the government to incentivize self-sufficiency in domestic food production, reports Reuters. However, Indonesian demand for corn has grown over the past several years and Desianto Utomo of the Indonesian Feedmills Association has voiced concern with the reduction, stating that Indonesia “should be importing 3.5 MMT.” The country’s 32 feedmills can handle 21.5 MMT (24 MMT by the end of 2015) annually, but are currently running at only 75-80 percent capacity.