Friday 24 May 2013

Commodities Buzz: UK Wheat Imports Seen Up Nearly 10%

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 yesterday- 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.
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