Despite the seasonal increase in spring lamb supplies, and consequent higher export volumes, Australian lamb shipments in October remained 2% below year-ago levels, at 21,234 tonnes swt (Department of Agriculture and Water Resources).
Compared to the five-year (2011-2015) October average, however, exports were up 7%.
Due to higher year-on-year volumes shipped during the first six months of the year, the January to October total remained 1% above the corresponding period last year.
The largest growth markets for the year-to-date include China, the US, Japan, Korea and Papua New Guinea. Although the volume to the Middle East as a whole is lower year-on-year for the ten month period, the UAE and Qatar have recorded strong growth.
Total chilled lamb exports for the year-to-October eased 2% year-on-year, to 82,773 tonnes swt – with increased chilled shipments to the US and Korea not enough to offset the declines to the Middle East and the EU. Frozen lamb volumes for the year-to-date rose 4%, to 112,769 tonnes swt, largely driven by year-on-year increases to China, the US, Korea, the EU and Japan.
Lamb exports to the Middle East for the January to October period were 10% lower than the corresponding period last year, at 51,962 tonnes swt.
The majority consisted of chilled product (43,492 tonnes swt), which eased 6% year-on-year, while frozen volumes (8,470 tonnes swt) were down 27%. Most of the decline to the Middle East was attributed to a 92% drop in shipments to Bahrain for the year-to-date – from 7,419 tonnes swt in 2015, to 593 tonnes swt in 2016 – due to the lifting of the government subsidy on imported Australian lamb.
Encouragingly though, two of the largest and most progressive markets in the Middle East for Australian lamb – the UAE and Qatar – did record considerable growth for the January to October period. Volumes to the UAE were up 12% year-on-year, to 17,090 tonnes swt, and to Qatar increased 13%, to 13,584 tonnes swt.
http://www.mla.com.au/prices-markets/market-news/lamb-export-growth-across-most-major-markets/