WA Post-Record Crop Could Be as Small as 15Mt: MP
Western Australia, Australia’s top grain producer, faces a severe urea shortage linked to the Iran‑Israel‑US conflict, prompting MP Rick Wilson to warn that the 2026‑27 crop could fall to around 15 million tonnes – roughly a 45 percent drop from the record harvest. CBH Group has not yet released official estimates, but is modelling scenarios based on limited fertilizer and fuel supplies. Recent rains have allowed an early seeding start, yet growers are scrambling to fill diesel tanks while awaiting the GIWA outlook due April 17. A second fertilizer supplier has invoked force majeure, further tightening nitrogen availability.
Port of Newcastle Exports 2.95Mt Wheat in 2025
The Port of Newcastle shipped 2.95 million tonnes of wheat in 2025, nearly five times the volume recorded in 2024. This surge helped lift total non‑coal cargo to a record 11.12 million tonnes, surpassing the 2021 high. Wheat accounted for about 12%...
Mort & Co Fertiliser Cuts Reliance on Urea, Improves Soil
Mort & Co has launched an Australian‑made organic fertiliser granule produced from beef‑feedlot manure at its new $15 million AUD (≈$10 million USD) Grassdale facility. The granules can substitute roughly one‑third of traditional urea while delivering comparable nitrogen efficiency, as demonstrated on...
China Wheat Auction Clearance Rate Increases
China’s domestic wheat auctions under the minimum‑price program have accelerated, with a year‑to‑date clearance rate of 79.5% and a perfect 100% clearance on the March 18 auction. Average sale prices rose to ¥2,441 per tonne (about $354), reflecting strong demand from...
Fuel Excise Halved, Truck Charges Removed for Three Months
The Australian federal government announced a temporary halving of the fuel excise, cutting pump prices by about 26.3 cents per litre, and reduced the heavy‑vehicle road user charge (RUC) to zero for three months. It also postponed a scheduled 6% RUC...
WA’s CSBP Opens up on Fertiliser in Trying Times
CSBP, a major Western Australian fertilizer supplier, warned that the ongoing blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is severely curtailing urea imports, a key nitrogen source for growers. To offset the shortfall, the company has accelerated domestic production of ammonium...
Daily Market Wire 27 March 2026
Severe drought across the U.S. Hard Red Winter wheat belt has driven Chicago July wheat up 7.25 cents to $6.30 per bushel, with CFTC data showing the largest ever gross long and a near‑record gross short position. Export sales surged to...
JV Kicks Off Large-Scale Pongamia Plantation in CQ
Japan’s Nippon Steel Trading and Queensland’s Energreen have launched the Green Biotechnology Solutions joint venture, planting tens of thousands of pongamia trees near Emerald. The initial phase includes 16,000 trees and a commercial nursery, allowing local landholders to grow the...
Ray White Report Shows Land Value, Harvest Correlation
Ray White’s 2024‑25 farmland research shows that Australia’s strong grain harvest did not uniformly lift dry‑land cropping values, with regional divergences driven by commodity prices and higher borrowing costs. While Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia saw median prices rise...
EU FTA Holds some Benefit for Grain, Oilseed Sector Bar Rice
The Australia‑EU free trade agreement eliminates tariffs on key grains – wheat, barley and wheat starch – saving up to $166‑$392 per tonne, and grants a $70 million duty‑free wheat‑gluten quota. Canola oil, machinery and chemicals also become tariff‑free, while ethanol...
Higher Production to Reduce Egypt Wheat Import
Egypt’s wheat harvest for 2026 is projected at 9.8 million tonnes, a 6.5% increase over the previous year, driven by a 170,000‑ha expansion of planted area. The state‑run General Authority for Supply Commodities plans to buy up to 5 Mt for its...
Fertiliser Shortages Could Hit Australia in Late May, June: Collins
Minister Julie Collins warned that fertiliser shortages could hit Australian growers by late May or June if the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked. While current stocks cover the early cropping season, 95% of Australia’s urea—65% shipped through the Persian Gulf...
GTA Submission Calls for New Approach to DAFF Cost Recovery
Grain Trade Australia (GTA) has submitted a formal objection to the Australian Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry’s (DAFF) new export cost‑recovery program, arguing that the scheme over‑recovers fees and lacks industry consultation. DAFF’s Cost Recovery Implementation Statements (CRIS) will...
WA Plant to Produce 2.3Mt of Urea From Mid-2027
Perdaman’s Project Ceres urea plant near Karratha will produce 2.3 million tonnes per year, with full output slated for June 2027 after commissioning in March. The $6 billion facility will be Australia’s only domestic urea producer, dedicating at least 1 Mt to local growers....
Feedgrain Focus: Northern Values Jump as Input Costs Hit
Heavy rain and flooding across central and southern Queensland this week have tightened urea availability and pushed input costs higher, while a 25% rise in diesel prices linked to the Middle East conflict has lifted freight rates by about $5...
Fuel Standards Amended to Ease Squeeze in Regions: Bowen
The Australian government announced a 60‑day temporary amendment to fuel quality standards, permitting higher sulfur content to unlock roughly 100 million litres of petrol each month. This measure addresses regional fuel shortages triggered by Middle East supply constraints after the Strait...
Port Issues Push some Bales South for Export: Cotton Australia
Cotton Australia reports that a portion of lint bales from the Northern Territory and Western Australia are being trucked over 3,500 km to Brisbane for export, despite the closer proximity of Darwin and Wyndham ports. High transport costs, limited infrastructure, and...
Middle East Crisis Could Test Property Market Confidence
Escalating Middle East tensions are pushing diesel prices higher, tightening operating costs for Australian rural producers. The surge is prompting both crop and grazing operators to reassess input purchases, delay acquisitions, and prioritize fuel‑efficient assets. Valuers and industry leaders warn...
NSW Cotton Partnership to Face Court over Farm Deaths
Directors of New South Wales cotton giant P&J Harris & Sons will appear before the Industrial Court on April 20, facing charges over two fatal workplace incidents—a 2022 backhoe accident and a 2024 drowning. SafeWork NSW has alleged six companies within...
New Milne Mill Enables Market, Product Expansion
Milne AgriGroup has doubled its production capacity to 300,000 tonnes, creating Australia’s largest pelletised ruminant‑feed mill in Welshpool. The expansion, supported by a $5 million WA grant, enables the company to export formulated pellets across Asia and to supply 6,000 tonnes to South...
Australia Exports 91,511t Chickpeas, 300,009t Lentils in Jan
Australia shipped 91,511 tonnes of chickpeas and 300,009 tonnes of lentils in January, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. Chickpea exports collapsed 85% from the December peak of 594,201 tonnes, while lentil shipments slipped 5% from December’s 316,358 tonnes....
Urea Price Jumps as Iran Fall-Out Halts Shipping
Urea prices in Australia have surged by roughly A$150 per tonne after the escalation of the Iran‑US‑Israeli conflict shut the Strait of Hormuz, halting shipments from key Middle‑East producers such as Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Spot prices have...
South African Corn Output Down but Not Out
South Africa’s 2025‑26 corn harvest is projected at 16.1 million tonnes, a 3.1% decline from the previous record‑high season despite a 4.6% expansion in planted area. Yield variability, especially in key provinces, outweighs the acreage gain, while white corn output edges...
ABARES Confirms Record for Barley; Canola, Wheat Lift
Australia’s ABARES crop report confirms a record barley harvest of 16.33 million tonnes, surpassing the previous high of 14.65 Mt set in 2020‑21. Wheat production is revised upward to 35.99 Mt, making it the third‑largest crop after the 2022‑23 peak, while canola reaches...
Middle East Conflict Sparks Slew of Shipping Charges
Shipping lines are imposing emergency surcharges and rerouting cargo due to heightened security risks in the Middle East, especially around the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea. CMA CGM, HapagLloyd and Maersk have announced fees up to US$4,000 per container...
GRDC Update: Growth Seen in Asian Feedgrain Demand
Grains Australia CEO Richard Simonaitis told the GRDC Perth Update that bio‑fuel policies are reshaping Australian grain exports, with EU canola demand driving Western Australia’s highest‑value market. At the same time, feedgrain demand in Southeast Asia is accelerating faster than...
Bangladesh’s Food Grain Imports Surge
Bangladesh’s food‑grain imports surged 42 percent in the first half of the 2025‑26 marketing year, reaching 4.2 million tonnes, driven primarily by a sharp rise in wheat purchases. Private‑sector wheat imports jumped 31 percent while government imports fell, and rice imports exploded 380 percent,...
Last Week’s Trades Point to Firmer Markets: CGX
Clear Grain Exchange (CGX) reported a more balanced grain demand last week, with wheat and barley each accounting for 34% of trades, a sharp shift from wheat‑dominated activity the week before. Canola represented 15% of transactions while pulses and other...
Daily Market Wire 23 February 2026
Wheat futures posted a three‑session rally as compressed spreads triggered massive short covering after the VSR observation period ended. Export commitments now cover 92 % of the USDA’s annual target, while Russian strikes have reduced Ukrainian Black Sea export capacity by...
GrainCorp Confident of Global Grain Market Rebalance
GrainCorp CEO Robert Spurway told shareholders that global wheat oversupply of 18 million tonnes is driving low prices and tighter margins for grain handlers. Growers are holding back grain, reducing market availability, but the company expects inventories to rebalance eventually, though...
GRDC Update: Pulses a ‘Slow Burn’ as WA Seeks Wider Rotation
At the GRDC’s 2026 Perth Update, a pulse panel highlighted the modest share of pulses in Western Australia’s record 27 million‑tonne harvest—just 1 % compared with 4.4 Mt of canola. Researchers and growers argued that improved soil liming, longer‑term rotation planning, and newer...
Ongoing War Stifles Ukraine’s Grain Exports
Ukraine’s grain exports have slumped dramatically as Russian shelling intensifies attacks on Black Sea ports and energy infrastructure, cutting monthly shipments from 3.6 Mt to 2.5 Mt. Year‑to‑date volumes are 28.5% lower and export value down 18%, eroding billions of foreign‑currency earnings...
Non-Tariff Measures Costing Industry Billions: GA
Grains Australia’s new report quantifies non‑tariff measures (NTMs) as a 20.4% tariff‑equivalent on Australian grain exports, costing the sector about $4.6 billion in forgone revenue each year. The analysis, built on ABARES research and ANU‑led econometric modelling, is the most detailed...
WA Grain Feeds Into Aurizon’s Record HY26 Bulk Earnings
Aurizon announced record bulk earnings for the half ending 31 December, driven primarily by a surge in Western Australian grain volumes. Bulk EBITDA reached $117 million, a 39 percent increase year‑on‑year, while total bulk rail volumes rose 4 percent to 28.4 Mt. The company also...
Australia Exports 2.29Mt Wheat in Dec in New-Crop Surge
Australia’s wheat exports jumped to 2,288,487 tonnes in December 2025, more than double November’s volume and slightly above the 2.13 Mt shipped a year earlier. The surge reflects the arrival of new‑crop wheat from southern ports, marking the start of the...
Daily Market Wire 16 February 2026
US headline CPI rose 0.2% month‑over‑month, bringing annual inflation down to 2.4% year‑over‑year and bolstering expectations of further Federal Reserve rate cuts. Wheat futures slipped in Chicago, Kansas and European markets as record spread volumes forced an inverted curve, even...
GIWA Estimate for Record Crop Settles on 27.35Mt
The Grain Industry Association of Western Australia (GIWA) announced a record 2025‑26 harvest of 27.35 million tonnes, surpassing its December forecast of 26.55 Mt. Yield gains were driven by adequate July‑August rainfall, mild grain‑fill temperatures, and a 6.8% expansion of total crop...
Scale of Australia’s Dec Chickpea, Lentil Exports Surprises
Australian legume exporters posted a dramatic December surge, shipping 588,122 tonnes of chickpeas and 410,805 tonnes of lentils, up 57% and more than double respectively from November. India dominated demand, taking 63% of chickpeas and 39% of lentils, while Bangladesh and Pakistan...
