China has made its first purchase of Australian malting barley in twelve months, as the country continues to recover from the outbreak of SARS, ABC Online revealed on January 22. Australia's largest barley exporter, ABB Grain Limited says the country's demand for malting barley has returned as the Chinese head back to restaurants and resume beer drinking. But ABB Chairman Trevor Day says increased competition from Australian exporters could see prices drop for malting barley.

"There is grain going out of Victoria as a deregulated market, and we know Glencorp with Brooks and others that are acting in that market, and of course we've seen a licence granted out of Western Australia for malting barley into China to Brooks, Glencorp and for another company that are also acting in that part, and I think there are some minor ones as well."

23 January, 2004