Barley markets: Saudi Arabia a saviour for Australian barley

After losing China as a market, a large volume of Australian barley has found a home.

Good Step: Thomas Elder Market’s Andrew Whitelaw says Australia has found a home for a large volume of barley and events overseas have provided a much stronger price. Picture: ZOE PHILLIPS

AUSTRALIAN  barley has found a home in Saudi Arabia, after securing a significant portion of the country’s new barley tender.

And it has come at a good price.

It follows Australian barley exports to China coming to a halt after hefty 80 per cent tariffs were introduced in May last year.

It is the second tender from Saudi Arabia that Australia has won.

“In November, Australia won volume into Saudi Arabia,” Thomas Elder Markets’ Andrew Whitelaw said.

“At the time it was a great win which we needed after losing China.”

Mr Whitelaw said Saudi Arabia was “back in the mix” with another tender last month that was looking for about 480,000 tonnes of feed barley for delivery in March and April.

“Australia has secured all of that tender bar one vessel,” Mr Whitelaw said.

The average price for this tender was $358 a tonne, according to Mr Whitelaw.

“This is about 18 per cent up on their last tender during November, which was about $320 a tonne,” he said.

Mr Whitelaw said Saudi Arabia was an old barley market that had come back into the game after losing China.

“This is fantastic news, as there were concerns that Australia would struggle to fill further demand due to the large export program,” Mr Whitelaw said.

“Yet, we have found a home for a large volume, and events overseas have provided a much stronger price.”

Typically in a bumper year, Mr Whitelaw said prices trended lower for growers, but events overseas had “taken over”.

He said events overseas such as storms in Utah, the Russian export tax and rampant Chinese demand were all playing into a lift in prices.

He described the news as a positive step forward in finding new markets for the grain.

“In conjunction with the business won into Mexico, it is a sign that we are finding homes for our barley in the absence of China,” he said.

“We have a large job ahead of us on barley, but this is a good step.”

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