Weather & Science
Australia Sees Wheat Exports Plunging 20% on Drier Climate
- Australian cargoes have helped keep global prices in check
- Canola and barley supplies also set to drop in coming year
A farmer harvests a field of wheat stalks in Wimmera, Australia.
Photographer: William West/AFP/Getty ImagesThis article is for subscribers only.
Australia, the world’s second-largest wheat exporting country, is likely to see shipments slump 20% from record levels in the coming financial year as production tumbles because of a shift to a drier climate pattern.
Exports will probably fall to 22.5 million tons in 2023-24 from an all-time high of 28 million tons a year earlier, while output is set to decrease to 28.2 million tons from 39.2 million tons, government forecaster Abares said. The figure for the harvest just completed is up from 36.6 million tons estimated in December. Planting for the coming crop only gets under way in April.