China – tensions with Australia rise

Trade tensions between China and Australia continue to escalate. This week, officials in Beijing slapped an 80.5% import tariff on Australian barley, which is likely to mean an end to any grain trade between the two countries in the short term.

Netherlands – milk production rising

The pace of growth seen in Dutch milk production in early 2020 appears to be slowing. For April, milk collections from Dutch farms stood at 1.15bn litres, which was 1.6% ahead of the same month last year, but slower than the growth of 3% to 5% seen in January to March.

US – soya bean plantings to rise sharply

Grain market analyst Informa has lifted its forecast for US soya bean plantings this year to just under 86m acres. Early forecasts had been for soya bean plantings as low as 76m acres. Last year, US farmers planted just over 89m acres in soya beans.

Argentina – beef exports surge ahead

Argentinian beef exports are performing very strongly in 2020. For April, early indications suggest Argentinian beef exports stood at 37,000t. This brings Argentinian beef exports for the first four months of 2020 (Jan-Apr) to 152,500t, which is up 11% year on year.