In Commodity News 04/05/2015
Germany is likely to harvest 25.6 million tonnes of wheat in 2015, down from an especially large crop of 27.7 million tonnes in 2014, Germany’s leading grain trader ADM Germany said on Thursday. ADM said in a report it forecast Germany’s 2015 rapeseed crop at 5.4 million tonnes, down 6.2 million tonnes in 2014.
ADM Germany forecasts the European Union’s 2015 wheat crop (excluding durum) at 139.1 million tonnes, down from a record crop of 148.5 million tonnes last year. The EU’s 2015 rapeseed crop is seen at 21.7 million tonnes, down from 24.3 million tonnes in 2014, ADM Germany said.
In Germany, the EU’s second largest wheat producer and usually the largest rapeseed producer, welcome rain fell in recent days after a dry spell, ADM Germany said. “More rain is needed to maintain the current good conditions for growth,” it said. Other observers also said this week the return of rain in western Europe should help wheat plants after a dry spell this month and keep the EU on course for a good harvest, although below last year’s record.
The United Kingdom’s 2015 wheat crop is likely to fall to 14.4 million tonnes from 16.4 million last year, ADM Germany estimated. The 2015 wheat crop in Romania, which has greatly expanded wheat exports in the past year, is likely to drop to 6.5 million tonnes from 7.6 million tonnes in 2014, it said.
