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Corn: Weather is a decisive factor right now

April 4, 2018 at 12:21 PM , Starry Night Ltd.
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SOFIA. Domestic consumption on an ascending trend. Will weather conditions shelter or pester husbandry activities?

Corn: in the grasp of weather’s turns

BULGARIA. During the first ten-days period of the month, temperatures are forecasted to be above the threshold for the season. A longer period of higher temperatures will be favorable for later in the month resumption of husbandry activities, which have been quite postponed because of abundant moisture in fields. However, on a few occasions, mainly in the regions of the Northwest and central North, intermittent showers are forecasted to fall, which is expected to further delay agricultural fieldwork. Unexpected disfavoring weather conditions could actually make the battle with natural forces long and tedious! However, farmers should know it best since farming is an open factory under a fickle sky. Anyhow, once sowing starts, local market sentiments forecast upcoming planted acreages to stand between 420,000 – 440,000 ha. As harvest 2017-18 was just unfolding nationwide, farmers stood before corn fields of 419,111 ha.

       Harvest 2017-18

(01.09.2017 - 30.03.2018)

            units in MT

Beginning availability

580,000

Aggregate output

2,315,387

Imports

10,460

Domestic consumption

755,000

   food & industrial usage

290,000

   feed

465,000

Exports to the world

881,122

   to EU markets

   729,557

   to rest of the world

   151,565

Source: Bulgarian Ministry of Agriculture

A sustained hike in domestic demand

Locally, corn is mainly used by the livestock sector. The high-quality characteristics of this year’s corn, together with competitive prices since early in the marketing season, have made the grain a preferred choice to local mills. In addition, whenever the export dynamics on the wheat market have been strong and sustained over longer periods of time – as has been the case so far in the year – local processors turn to maze. As a result, by the end of March 2018, corn used for feed accounted to 465,000 mt, which on a yearly basis represents an increase of 19.23%. By the end of last week, according to local authorities, corn consumed by the food & industrial sector accounted to 290,000 mt, which year-to-year represents a rise of 20.83%. The domestic trend is forecasted to continue its sustained climb.

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