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Australia's barley trade has avoided the shipping difficulties of other local exports caused by the Iraq war, but only because drought has already slashed supplies of the malting and stock feed grain. Normally the biggest such exports in the world, barley shipments to the Gulf war zone this year have already been cut to nothing by Australia's 2002/03 drought.

In any other year Australian barley exports would be well underway to Gulf markets at this time of year. However, this year they would have faced the same diversions that have hit Australian wheat and live sheep shipments. Drought which devastated Australian 2002/03 winter crops has cut ABB Grain export availability this year to between one million and 1.4 million tons, half the normal three million tons or so, the official said.

Australia's second-largest barley exporter, Western Australia's Co-operative Bulk Handling, has also been spared by drought from having ships around the Gulf.



25 March, 2003