Australia: Wheat, sorghum firm amid thin trade

Prices for wheat have firmed in the past week in response to thin selling from growers and the re-emergence of some modest export demand, while barley has traded sideways to lower on lacklustre interest. The sorghum harvest is gathering pace in northern New South Wales and southern Queensland, but early volume is limited so prices have crept up a dollar or two. Growers across south-eastern Australia are making a start on early-season planting of grazing oats, and of dual-purpose canola ahead of the main winter-crop seeding window opening next month. Table 1: Indicative prices in Australian dollars per tonne. Domestic consumers remain well covered on wheat as they switch from summer to winter rations, and away from barley for the cooler months. “You’re working hard to get people to put up their hands,” one trader said. On sorghum, feeding demand is confined to the poultry and pig sectors, with both seen as having enough coverage to get them into April-May, when harvest volume is ...