April 4, 2012

A three-year high in March has been hit by Australian beef exports to the US and are likely to remain strong in coming weeks, but exports to South Korea and Japan dropped during the month, marketing concern Meat & Livestock Australia Ltd. said Tuesday (Apr 3).

Amid high US beef prices, Australian exports to the US in March totalled 26,786 boneless tonnes, up 15% from February and 73% from the same month a year earlier, the MLA said in a statement, citing figures issued Tuesday by the government's Department of Agriculture.

Australia's beef exports to the US have been rising for months and totalled 61,899 tonnes in the first quarter, an increase of 76% from the year-earlier period, after falling in 2011 to the lowest level since the 1960s, the MLA said.

"With prices for imported beef to the US anticipated to remain high throughout April, the increase in Australian shipments is expected to be maintained in the coming weeks," the MLA said.

Australia exported a total of 83,373 tonnes of beef in March, a 5.9% increase on month but a 4.6% decline from a year earlier, while first-quarter exports totalled 209,245 tonnes, up 1.5% from a year earlier.

Japan remained a difficult market for Australian beef exporters in March due to subdued consumer demand and increased competition from US beef, which was helped by a weaker US dollar, the MLA said.

Australia exported 25,028 tonnes of beef to Japan in March, an increase of 6.7% from a month earlier but a decline of 21% from the same month last year. It was the lowest March total since 2003. Exports to Japan totalled 65,283 tonnes in the first quarter, a decline of 17% from the same period a year earlier.

The increased competitiveness of US beef also weighed on demand for Australian beef in South Korea, Australia's third-largest beef-export market, the MLA said. The supply in South Korea of traditional Hanwoo beef has also reportedly increased in recent months, tempering demand for imports, it said.

Australian beef exports to South Korea for March totalled 7,921 tonnes, a decline of 17% from February and a steep drop of 52% from the same month last year. First-quarter beef exports to South Korea from Australia totalled 24,199 tonnes, down 39% from the same period last year.

The outlook for Australian exports to Japan and South Korea is somewhat uncertain and complicated by a likely decrease in cattle slaughter and processing in Australia due to disruptions arising from Easter holidays, it said.