July 2, 2007

Australian grain stocks down 15 percent on-month in May
 

Total grain held in storage facilities operated by Australia's major bulk grain handling companies fell 15 percent on-month in May to 8.50 million tonnes, the government's Bureau of Statistics reported Monday (Jul 2).

Stocks of wheat fell 15 percent on-month to 5.87 million tonnes, barley stocks shed 20 percent to 1.61 million tonnes, while others including oats, triticale, sorghum, pulses and oilseeds slipped 5.6 percent to 1.01 million tonnes, it reported.

Stocks of winter grains typically rise during the harvest late in the calendar year to peak in December, then decline steadily through the year on the back of exports and domestic use.

The bureau restarted this data series in late spring. It does not issue year-earlier figures or comment on them.

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 was revived in response to concerns regarding availability of grain after a drought-affected harvest in 2006.

The collection does not measure the total grain held in Australia, with figures from regional or small storage operators not captured in this series.