Thailand rice exports expected to rise sharply
Thailand is forecast to export 8 million tonnes of rice in the 2021-22 marketing year, up 31 percent from the previous year, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the Foreign Agricultural Service of the US Department of Agriculture (USDA). Attractive Thai prices, driven by the weakening of the Thai baht, are the reason for the sharp increase in exports, the report said. Rice production is projected to increase year-on-year from 18.8 million tonnes to 20.8 million tonnes, the USDA said. The report noted that the country’s wheat imports are expected to decline by 13 percent in 2021-22. Reduced domestic demand for milling and feed wheat due to a slow economic recovery from the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic and high import prices for feed wheat are the primary reasons for the decline. An even sharper drop in corn imports is expected, as the USDA forecasts a 17 percent decrease due reduced demand for swine feed caused by the African swine fever outbreak.
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U.S. sees record oil production next year moving even higher
Oil output will average 12.6 million barrels a day in 2023, an increase from its previous estimate of 12.41 million, according to Energy Information Administration data. The current annual all-time high of 12.3 million barrels a day was set in 2019. This year’s production forecast was also revised higher to 11.97 million barrels a day from an earlier projection of 11.8 million, the EIA said in its monthly Short-Term Energy Outlook report. This extra U.S. supply is a welcome boon for President Joe Biden, who has asked suppliers to raise production in order to help tamp down energy prices that are contributing to the highest inflation in decades. In the wake of oil prices surging to their highest since 2014, two of the largest U.S. oil companies announced they would increase production by double digits in the Permian Basin, America’s most prolific oil patch. Prices have rallied with supplies consistently falling short of demand surging around the globe as economies recover from pandemic-era slowdowns. Global consumption is set to reach 100.6 million barrels a day this year, a higher revision from the last estimate of 100.52 million, according to the report. Consumption is expected to rise to 102.5 million barrels a day in 2023.
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Indian trade body raises sugar production estimate
India is likely to produce 31.45 million tonnes of sugar in 2021/22 marketing year, nearly 3.1 percent more than the previous estimate, as output is set to jump in the key western state of Maharashtra, a leading trade body said on Monday.
India is the world’s second-biggest sugar producer and the higher output could weigh on global prices. Maharashtra’s sugar output is likely to rise by 10 percent from a year ago to a record 11.7 million tonnes in the current marketing year that ends on Sept. 30, the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) said in a statement. Sugar mills could divert a record 3.4 million tonnes of sugar for ethanol production, the ISMA said.
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China warns against publishing false iron ore information amid price rally
China’s state planner warned on Wednesday against fabricating iron ore prices, saying for the second time this year that regulators would study effective measures to ensure market stability amid fast rising prices. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) and the State Administration for Market Regulation recently talked to iron ore price information providers, warning the firms to ensure accuracy of their releases, the regulator said in a statement. The NDRC and market regulator said they would strengthen market supervision and strictly crack down on any irregularities. A Shanghai-based ferrous e-commerce platform, Esteel.com, said in a notice on Wednesday morning that one of its previous releases mentioning a possible decline in iron ore shipments from Rio Tinto (RIO.AX)and Atlas was not authorised by the two companies nor verified, calling it “false information” and saying the post had been taken down.
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India’s tea production indicates a revival in 2021
After a dramatic drop in 2020, the year 2021 saw India’s tea production rebound. According to the Tea Board, the country produced 1,329.04 million kilogrammes (mkg) of tea in 2021. This would represent an increase of 71.51 mkg (5.69 percent) above the 1,257.53 mkg produced in 2020. In fact, 2020 will be the first year in a long time that India’s tea production would be lower than the previous year. In the previous decade, production had been at an all-time high every year. In 2019, production reached a new high of 1,390.08 mkg. As a result, despite a rebound in production in 2021, output could not match that of 2019. Similarly, it was unable to attain 1,338.63 mkg produced in 2018. In 2017, however, it was more than 1,321.76 mkg. Sri Lanka’s output increased by 20.56 mkg, or 7.45 percent, from 276.03 mkg in 2020 to 296.59 mkg in 2021. Kenya’s production, on the other hand, fell to 434.50 mkg from 468.35 mkg, a loss of 33.85 mkg or 7.23 percent.
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Indonesia’s palm oil export curbs upend global edible oil markets
Indonesia’s plan to limit palm oil exports has upended the global edible oil market by making what is the traditionally cheapest vegetable oil the costliest among the three major edible oils traded across the world.
Indonesia, the world’s biggest palm oil producer and exporter, on Thursday announced a 20 percent mandatory domestic sales obligation for all palm producers in a bid to cool local cooking oil prices.
The move lifted Malaysian palm oil futures to a record high of 5,639 ringgit ($1,346.47) per tonne on Friday.
The price rise is likely to prompt key buyers such as India, China, Pakistan and several African countries to shift to rival soyaoil and sunflower oils, which are available at a discount to palm oil for February shipments.