January 5, 2007

Australian grain stocks rise 44 percent in November amid harvest

Total grain held in storage facilities operated by Australia's major bulk grain handling companies rose 44 percent on month in November to 15.1 million tonnes, the government's Bureau of Statistics reported Friday.

Stocks of wheat rose 34 percent in the month to 10.2 million tonnes, barley stocks almost doubled in November to 3.4 million tonnes, while others including oats, triticale, sorghum, pulses and oilseeds rose to 1.5 million tonnes in November from 1.1 million tonnes previously, it reported.

Grain stocks usually rise in November as the harvest gathers pace.

The bureau restarted this data series about a month ago.

This data series commenced in 2002, following concerns about the lack of information on the quantity of grain stored across Australia during the drought of that year, and was done monthly and quarterly until December 2004, when it was halted as concerns lessened following increased production after the drought ended.

It has been revived in response to concerns regarding feed grain availability during the current drought.

The collection does not measure the total grain held in Australia, with regional or small storage operators not represented in these statistics.