Today (Aug 26), the market for grains in China is shown as follows:

Corn:

Corn prices in China mostly keep steady with further declines in some regions. And the average price is 2,265 CNY/tonne nationwide, down by 7 CNY/tonne from yesterday. The price among deep-processing enterprises in Shandong prevails at 2,390-2,430 CNY/tonne, down by 10 CNY/tonne from yesterday. At Jinzhou port, Liaoning, the old corn with volume weight of 690-700 g/L and better quality is priced at 2,240-2,250 CNY/tonne, down by 10 CNY/tonne at lows from yesterday. And the old corn with volume weight of 720 g/L is priced at 2,250-2,260 CNY/tonne, down by 10 CNY/tonne from yesterday. At Bayuquan port, the old corn with volume weight of 700-710 g/L is priced at 2,230-2,240 CNY/tonne and the new corn with volume weight of 710-720 g/L is priced at 2,260-2,270 CNY/tonne. At Guangdong port, Grade-II old corn is traded at 2,350 CNY/tonne, with a decline of 30 CNY/tonne compared with yesterday.

The cost of corn in Northeast area is high, while the prices in Northern deep-processing enterprises fall back in succession. In this case, the profit margin gets squeezed. And there’s no distinct increase in corn outflow, which tightens corn supply in phases. Besides, China increases the purchase of imported corn. And private exporters have sold 408,000 tonnes of corn to China, according to a report on Tuesday. On the other side, imported corn has been arriving at ports successively in recent days, and the early-ripening new corn has entered market in North China. Hence, it will likely increase corn supply after September. But market buyers are not active in purchasing. Therefore, short-term corn market is projected to fluctuate at high levels. Buyers can keep eyes on the ex-warehouse of corn in Northern area and auction situation this week.

Sorghum:

Domestic sorghum prices are stable today, of which dried sorghum prices prevail at around 2,900-2,960 CNY/tonne. Domestic sorghum supplies are reducing and margins are growing, so that farmers and traders both tend to prop up prices. However, Chinese importers have bought relatively huge amount of sorghum, which will be at relatively low prices. Moreover, it become more difficult to stock up sorghum under warmer weather conditions, coupled with limited demand from distilleries, so that domestic sorghum market is weighed down. Overall, domestic sorghum prices are predicted to post a strengthening trend.

Imported sorghum prices are stable in China today, with the average price at 2,213 CNY/tonne. Market participants are concerned that escalating U.S.-China tensions could affect future imports of sorghum. Moreover, the cost of importing sorghum is also strengthening due to the coronavirus pandemic. However, imported sorghum stocks at Guangdong ports still total 340,000 tonnes as of Aug 21. And an expected rise in sorghum arrivals will probably weigh down US sorghum prices in China. Participants can focus on the development of US-China relations.

Barley:

Imported barley prices are stable today with the average at 2,004 CNY/tonne. As of Aug 21st, imported barley stocks totaled 94,000 tonnes at Guangdong ports. There will be vessels arriving gradually in coming months, while downstream buyers have weak demand now, which will be negative to the market. Overall, imported barley prices are predicted to stay stable with a weakening trend in China.

Earlier this year, China announced anti-dumping and anti-subsidy duties totalling 80.5% on Australian barley imports from May 19 for five years. And recently, Australia has appealed to China’s Ministry of Commerce to conduct a formal review on barley tariffs. Should the decision come at the tail-end of the 90-day window, it would be delivered just as Australian farmers harvest a barley crop that’s forecast to hit a four-year high of more than 10 mln tonnes, according to a media report. The report also said Australia will look to markets such as Saudi Arabia, though traders said that farmers would need to accept a haircut of A$50 ($36.12) per tonne compared to what Chinese buyers paid.

(USD $1=CNY ¥6.91)