Canada Wheat Inventories Fall 8.8% From 2010, Government Says

Canada’s wheat inventories as of March 31 were 8.8 percent smaller than a year earlier at 15.6 million metric tons, Statistics Canada said today. Durum wheat supplies plunged 39.7 percent to 2.87 million metric tons.

Canola stockpiles at the end of March were estimated at 4.85 million tons, down 22.8 percent from 2010, the Ottawa-based government agency said. Barley inventories fell 31 percent to 3.52 million metric tons on March 31.

“The supply is down after weather reduced last year’s harvest,” said Ron Frost, a cash grain consultant at The Frost Forecast in Calgary. “We have a tightening supply scenario developing for canola, especially if we continue to have difficulty planting this year’s crops” after rain and snow delayed seeding the last two weeks, Frost said before the report.

The data come from a survey of 12,600 farmers conducted between March 24 and March 31,Statistics Canada said. The agency gives its preliminary field-crop seeded areas on June 23.

(Source: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-05-06/canada-wheat-inventories-fall-8-8-from-2010-government-says.html)