October 30, 2006

 

Argentina's wheat harvest ahead of last year

 

 

Argentina has harvested 6.6 percent of the 2006/07 wheat crop, compared with 3.3 percent at the same time last year, the Buenos Aires Cereals exchange said Friday (Oct 27).

 

The Exchange said that 54.7 percent of the new wheat crop was in good or very good condition, 19.8 percent was average, 23.7 percent was poor and 1.8 percent was practically lost and not worth harvesting.

 

Argentina will produce 13.5 million tonnes of wheat in 2006/07, up from 12.5 million tonnes a year earlier, according to the Secretariat.

 

The US Department of Agriculture forecasts Argentina's 2006/07 wheat crop at 13.25 million tonnes.

 

 

Soybeans

 

As of Friday, 2.5 percent of the forecast 16.1 million hectares had been planted, the Exchange said.

 

Soy area is expected to be up 2.4 percent from last year, a new record, the Exchange said.

 

The Agriculture Secretariat forecasts that 15.6 million hectares will be planted with soy in 2006/07, up 1.8 percent from a year ago.

 

The USDA estimates that Argentina will produce 41.3 million tonnes of soy from the 2006/07 crop.

 

 

Corn

 

As of Friday, 51.9 percent of the 2.52 million hectares forecast for corn had been planted, according to the Exchange.

 

Planting is down 7.4 points from the same date last year because early drought stalled seeding, the Exchange said.

 

According to the Secretariat, Argentina will plant an estimated 3.4 million hectares of corn during the 2006/07 crop cycle, up 6.8 percent from 3.18 million in 2005/06.

 

The Secretariat's forecast includes corn destined for animal feed, while the Exchange does not include that area in its estimate.

 

The USDA forecasts Argentina's 2006/07 corn production at 17.5 million tonnes.