May 9, 2008

 

Australian beef exports surge in April

 

 

After a slow start to the year, Australian beef and veal exports surged during April, with increased shipments to North Asia, the EU, Russia and South East more than offsetting lower volumes to North America.

 

Exports for the month reached 88,308 tonnes swt, up 21 percent on-year and the highest monthly total since May 2007. 

 

Following on from a revival in shipments during March, beef exports to Japan for April increased 8 percent year-on-year, to 33,080 tonnes swt. Japanese buyer demand has remained unstable in recent months due to higher prices and uncertainty surrounding the access of US beef.

 

Exports to South Korea for the month jumped 82 percent on-year from a low April 2007 volume, to 13,626 tonnes swt.

 

Australian beef exports to Russia for April reached a record 8,246 tonnes swt, nearly double the previous record from April 1998. Exports to the EU, at 1,076 tonnes, has also more than doubled from the same month last year.

 

Shipments to South East Asia rose strongly in April, thanks to increased demand and reduced competition from Brazil.

 

Philippines increased its beef shipments from Australia  seven-fold to 1576 tonnes while shipments to Singapore rose 172 percent to 675 tonnes.

 

Shipments to Indonesia also saw a strong increase, rising 121 percent on-year to 3,762 tonnes while exports to Taiwan rose 8 percent to 2,711 tonnes.

 

However, exports to the crucial US market fell back 28 percent on-year, to 19,604 tonnes swt ¨C the lowest April volume in 10 years.

 

Exports for the first four months of 2008, at only 65,773 tonnes swt, were the lowest since 1996, down 31 percent on the previous year.

 

The lower shipments to the US were blamed on the strong Australian dollar, which caused exporters to divert supplies to other markets. 

 

The recent developments have also caused Australia to have a reduced reliance on its three biggest markets- South Korea, Japan and the US, which now makes up 75 percent of the market for Australian beef. Last year, that proportion was 87 percent.