Today (May 23rd), the market for grains in China is shown as follows:
Corn: Domestic corn prices stay stable with some rises today. The price prevails at 1,940-2,080 yuan/tonne in Shandong, mostly stable and some up 20 yuan/tonne from yesterday. At Jinzhou port, Liaoning, 2018 new corn with 15% moisture of volume weight over 700 g/L is unchanged at 1,880-1,900 yuan/tonne. At Bayuquan port, 2018 new corn is priced steadily at 1,890-1,905 yuan/tonne (volume weight 690 g/L and moisture 14.5%). At Shekou port, Guangdong, second-class corn is offered at 2,050 yuan/tonne and can be traded with negotiations.
The minimum price in corn auction has been raised significantly, and U.S. grains can hardly find a channel to enter into China amid huge uncertainty in trade talks. These have made joint efforts to push corn price to a high level unseen this year. And traders are more willing to sell their stockpiles on account of broadened profits. Auction activities on temporary-reserved grains have kicked off today. Corn has seen a 100% trading rate in Jilin, and the market is now waiting for the result in local markets of Heilongjiang. As corn-consuming enterprises tend to stay on the sidelines, corn prices stay stable in production regions and at ports today. Later focus will remain on auction, as the price will fluctuate on the back of auction cost.
Sorghum:
Imported sorghum prices goes up today. (U.S. raw sorghum is priced steadily at 2,160 yuan/tonne in Shanghai, 2,160 in Nantong and not offered for out of stock in Zhangjiagang and Guangdong; Australian sorghum: raw sorghum goes up 20 yuan to 2,220 yuan/tonne in Tianjin, and remains unchanged at 2,200 in Qingdao and 2,320 yuan/tonne in Nantong, and dried sorghum goes up 20 yuan to 2,320 yuan/tonne in Tianjin and remains unchanged at 2,300 in Qingdao).
Domestic sorghum prices keep steady today. In Inner Mongolia, raw sorghum is not offered for out of stock and dried sorghum is 2,140 yuan/tonne in Hinggan League; raw sorghum is priced steadily at 2,060 and dried sorghum at 2,240 yuan/tonne in Chifeng; and raw sorghum is not offered in Tongliao. In Jilin Province, dried sorghum with freight is 2,240 yuan/tonne in Changchun, raw sorghum sacks and dried sorghum with freight are both 2,100 yuan/tonne in Songyuan, bulk dried sorghum with freight is not offered in Baicheng, and raw sorghum and dried sorghum sacks are at 1,900 and 1,980 yuan/tonne in Taonan. In Heilongjiang Province, dried sorghum with freight is priced steadily at 2,000 yuan/tonne in Qiqihar; raw sorghum is not offered and dried sorghum with freight is unchanged at 2,200 yuan/tonne in Daqing, and raw sorghum is 1,900 yuan/tonne and dried sorghum is 2,040 in Heihe. In Shanxi Province, raw sorghum is 2,100 yuan/tonne in Yuncheng, bulk dried sorghum with freight is 2,300 yuan/tonne in Jinzhong, and raw sorghum with freight and dried sorghum with freight are 1,960 and 2,160 yuan/tonne in Xinzhou.
Barley: Barley prices stay stable today. (Australian barley: raw sorghum remains unchanged at 2,220 yuan/tonne in Qingdao and and bulk raw sorghum at 2,220 in Nantong; Canadian barley: raw barley is priced steadily at 2,120 yuan/tonne and for brewing is 2,180 yuan/tonne in Nantong, and raw sorghum is 2,090 yuan/tonne in Qingdao; French barley: raw barley is not offered in Nantong; Ukrainian barley: not offered in Guangdong).
Sorghum price is now dragged down by weak demand due to continued drops in corn prices. And importers with storage in hand tend to prop up prices in view of low barley inventories at ports and stubbornly high cost of Australian barley. Merely, port sorghum and barley have lost their price advantage against corn as its energy feed substitutes. According to Cofeed, by the end of April, 500 enterprises surveyed has a total of 13,736,781 pigs in breeding, a reduction of 112,890 by 0.82% from 13,849,671 month on month. And for the 464 enterprises surveyed, sow number totals 1,292,659 in late April, down 6,864 by 1.29% from 1,309,523 month on month. The African swine fever has roiled the original trend of hog cycle in China, as middle and small farmers withdrew from the market and geared up the elimination of breeding sow stocks since the first outbreak last August, and it has been fiercely cutting the pig number in those provinces reported with more outbreaks. Thus, it will be hard for farmers to rebuild confidence in short time as a fall in live pig and sow stocks has stricken a serious blow at the sector. Given this, grain market will be curbed by its later consumption. In addition, China has bought 65,000 tonnes of US sorghum, the first purchase since August last year. Generally, port sorghum and barley markets are predicted to keep steady with some fluctuations in the short term, and port sorghum market may be buoyed again by concerns over trade disputes, so participants and focus on the outcome of trade talks.
(USD $1=CNY 6.92)
