July 19, 2010

China's 2010 wheat output to exceed 115 million tonnes

China's wheat production in 2010 is expected to surpass 115 million tonnes, said Chen Mengshan, spokesman of the Ministry of Agriculture, on Friday (Jul 16).

Given an annual consumption of 105 million tonnes of wheat, the supply is sufficient to meet the demand, he added.

China has harvested 108.8 million tonnes of winter wheat and is about to garner the spring wheat in autumn.

China's wheat prices rose rapidly earlier, shored up by higher minimum wheat purchasing prices and the entrance of a variety of purchasers, Chen said.

However, with more new wheat put on the market, wheat prices have stabilised, he noted.

China's wheat production has expanded by 26.8 billion tonnes cumulatively since 2003. The country has sufficient wheat reserves and is able to regulate the market, he said.