This week ended with some positive news in terms of production. South African farmers intend to increase the area planted to summer grain and oilseed by 5 percent from the 2017/18 production season to 4.03 million tonnes.
The planting activity has recently begun in the eastern and central regions of South Africa and likely to gain momentum following good rainfall in the past couple of days. Looking ahead, the weather, as a major determinant if the planned plantings materialises, will be a key focus in the market.
In terms of winter crops, wheat, barley and canola production estimates were lifted from the previous month due to expected higher yields. Nonetheless, these estimates, specifically wheat could be revised down marginally in the coming month owing to reports of recent crop damage in the Swartland area of the Western Cape following heavy winds and rainfall at the beginning of this week.
The SAFEX beef carcass market experienced a quiet week with prices unchanged from levels seen last week. In terms of the supply, the South African farmers slaughtered 211 951 head of cattle in August 2018, down by 11 percent from August 2017.
