Sugar surges. could it hurt Coca-Cola’s margins?
Sugar is used in food, beverage, and biofuel production, and its importance in global trade gives it a strong position in the commodity futures market. The price of sugar has surged 17 percent since the beginning of January 2021.
Brazil is a key sugarcane producer and exporter, and its lower production levels have recently affected sugar prices. In May, Brazilian mills reportedly had to cancel sugar export contracts as they shifted to ethanol production, seeking to capitalize on high energy prices. Brazil supplies half of the world’s sugar, producing 654.8 million tonnes of sugarcane, 41.25 million tonnes of processed sugar, and 29.7 billion liters of ethanol annually.
Thailand rice production, exports to rise
The La Niña weather phenomenon will provide plentiful precipitation and water supplies for rice farmers in Thailand, yielding 20 million tonnes of rice in marketing year 2022-23, a 2 percent increase over 2021-22, according to a Global Agricultural Information Network report from the US Department of Agriculture Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS). USDA’s FAS Bangkok Post is forecasting rice exports in 2022 at 8 million tonnes, up 31 percent from 6.1 million tonnes in 2021, due to larger exporter supplies. “The weakening of the Thai baht has made Thai rice export prices attractive and competitive,” FAS said. “Traders anticipate increased demand for Thai rice for the remainder of 2022 as current prices for Thai rice are competitive to other exporting countries.” Wheat imports for 2022-23 have been revised down to 2.7 million tonnes, as milling wheat demand has decreased more than growing demand for feed wheat.
ECC approves 120,000mt wheat sale for Afghanistan
The Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) of the Cabinet on Tuesday approved World Food Programme (WFP) request for purchase/reservation of 120,000 metric tons of wheat for Afghanistan in 2022-23 on humanitarian grounds. The purchase would be made from the imported wheat stock of Pakistan Agricultural Storage & Services Corporation (PASSCO) on the latest import price, according to press statement issued by Finance Ministry. According to the statement, the ECC meeting was chaired by various Ministers. The summary for wheat WFP wheat reservation was made by Ministry of National Food Security & Research.
USDA says european milk production is declining
EU dairy industry experts anticipate a further decline in EU milk production beginning in 2023, when the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and accompanying Farm to Fork Strategy (F2F) conditions require EU dairy farmers to adjust their production systems take effect.
According to a report from the US Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service published on the Global Agricultural Information Network, environmental limitations from the European Union (EU) are causing the region’s milk output to stagnate.
The production of milk in the region (except the UK) reached a peak in 2020 and has since been falling as a result of fewer cows being kept since many farmers are giving up dairy farming rather than making the necessary investments to comply with the new regulations.
Pakistan, China can promote tea production
Pakistan and China can promote tea on commercial scale through joint ventures, Gwadar Pro reported on Saturday, quoting experts. As potential suitable sites and land for tea cultivation are located alongside China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), therefore, China has a big role to play in promoting tea on a commercial scale through joint ventures and technical and financial support, experts said. China from the beginning has played a crucial role in tea promotion in Pakistan. With the technical and financial assistance of China, at Shinkiari in Mansehra, Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) established a tea estate of over 50 acres along with green and black tea processing units, but it is yet to be adopted by the private sector on a sustainable basis.
The story behind the proposed price cap on Russian oil
The notion that oil-consuming nations should organize a buyers’ cartel to cap the price of oil—promoted by U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen and recently endorsed by the leaders of the Group of Seven—sounds fanciful. After all, if this were workable, why didn’t we do it years ago to bring down oil prices? In fact, this is a creative and perhaps even practical response to two unusual imperatives. The first is well covered by the press: to reduce the flow of oil revenues that are financing Russia’s war machine. The second is not: to prevent an economically catastrophic increase in oil prices because of one element of European sanctions set to take effect at the end of this year. Oil prices fell to $20 a barrel at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, returned to pre-pandemic levels of around $60 a barrel in early 2021 as the economy recovered, and then spurted above $100 a barrel after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Iron ore price tumbles as recession fears fuel commodities selloff
Iron ore and steel prices tumbled on Friday as prospects of a sharp global economic downturn fanned fears of a slump in demand for commodities, despite signs of a rebound in manufacturing activity in top metals consumer China. The spectre of a global recession fed an already clouded demand outlook for iron ore in China, the world’s biggest steel producer, where mills have idled dozens of blast furnaces recently in a bid to reduce high inventories amid weak orders. Iron ore’s most-traded September contract on China’s Dalian Commodity Exchange ended daytime trade 6.9 percent lower at 747.50 yuan ($111.47) a tonne, extending losses to a second day. On the Singapore Exchange, the steelmaking ingredient’s front-month August contract was down 4.3 percent at $113.90 a tonne by 0703 GMT.