Australia: Rural Bank's rosy 2022 forecasts

Beef prices might steady a little, grain growers should do well despite wheat quality downgrades, dairy prices will stay high, lamb will be in demand and fine wool will be just that, fine. Those, in a nutshell, are the Rural Bank Australian Agriculture Outlook's predictions for 2022. While the bank's forecasts show some sectors are likely to be better off than others, they all have one theme in common: La Nina. The season would drive increased production of beef, sheepmeat, wool, dairy and production, making it more important than the pandemic recovery, trade conditions and supply chain disruptions. FLATTER CATTLE: Rural Bank expects beef cattle prices to flatten in the first half of 2022. The Eastern Young Cattle Indicator shot up two years ago and kept on breaking records. Rural Bank thinks that remarkable run might taper, with the curve flattening as local supply rebuilds. Australian beef production is expected to lift 12 per cent in the first half of 2022 as more cattle reach ...