Export Statistics For the 1st Quarter of the 2013-14 Season

23 JANUARY, 2013
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Export Statistics For the First Quarter of the 2013-14 Season

Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) compiles lamb, mutton and beef export statistics for the country. The following is a summary of the combined export statistics for October, November and December 2013 – the first three months of the 2013-14 meat export season.

B+LNZ  has developed an interactive meat exports tool for further analysis. The tool allows you to generate and download customised data and graphs of export lamb and beef statistics, by market, value, and volume. Access it at portal.beeflambnz.com/tools/export-tool

Summary

There was little change in the volume and value of beef and veal exports over the first quarter of the 2013-14 meat export season, compared to the equivalent period last season. However mutton exports rose significantly – up 16.3 per cent in volume and 22 per cent in total value. Export lamb volumes dropped, but the return per tonne increased 8.9 per cent – on account of the supply/demand equation.

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Sheep meat exports

Lamb exports

Total exports of lamb decreased by 5.3 per cent over the quarter, to 61,000 tonnes shipped weight. This reflected a decrease in bone-in cuts, partly offset by an increase in frozen carcasses exported to China.

The decrease in volume was offset by an 8.9 per cent increase in average value, resulting in the total value of lamb exports rising by 3.2 per cent. The receipts for lamb exports averaged $8,400 FOB per tonne over the quarter.

Mutton exports

Compared to the same period a year ago, the total volume and value of mutton exports rose by 16 and 22 per cent, respectively. The average return increased by 4.9 per cent, to $5,200 FOB per tonne.

China remains the largest market for mutton and continues to grow rapidly. New Zealand’s mutton exports to China doubled in the first three months of the 2013-14 season, compared to last season’s first quarter.

Beef and Veal exports

In the first quarter of the 2013-14 meat export season, total exports of beef and veal were almost unchanged (down 0.5 per cent) to 68,000 tonnes shipped weight. This reflected a notable decline in exports to North America – down 13 per cent – although partly offset by rises in exports to Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan and China.

The drop in exports to North America reflected a decrease in exports of manufacturing beef and veal, related to low bull and cow slaughter figures for the period. This drop in manufacturing beef and veal was not fully compensated by the exports to Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan and China. Meanwhile, exports of boneless beef (either chilled or frozen) increased.

Volumes exported to Indonesia quadrupled in the first quarter of the 2013-14 season, compared to the same period a year ago, due to a change in import regulations. (The quota system has been replaced by a price reference system.) Exports to Indonesia are now back to levels seen in late 2011.

The total value of beef and veal exports increased 0.5 percent in the first quarter of the 2013-14 season, compared to the same time last year. Overall, receipts for beef and veal exports averaged $5,900 FOB per tonne – up 1.0 percent.

The average return received from China for beef and veal was larger than that from the US, at $5,500 and $5,200 FOB per tonne, respectively.

ENDS

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