Heading in the right direction
The Snapshot
- January 2023 saw the strongest opening for the year from South Korea since 2014 with Aussie beef export demand nearly 8% above the five-year average pattern.
- Meanwhile, China managed the strongest start to the year since 2020. Opening flows of Aussie beef to China sit just 10% under the five-year average for January.
- Japan, showed a stronger start to 2023 too with volumes 17% higher than those seen during January 2022, but still sit well short of the five-year average for January by about 22%.
- Like the Japanese, the US consumer of Aussie beef showed a stronger start to the season compared to 2022, but also has some catchup to undertake as current volumes are running about 20% below the five-year average for January.
The Detail
Total Australian beef exports for January 2023 opened the season at 51,471 tonnes swt, which is nearly 19% higher than the levels seen in January 2022 and the highest opening volumes since 2020. Despite the improved start to the year, compared to the 5-year average for January, volumes are still about 15% below trend.
South Korea opened the season in good form with 10,125 tonnes swt of beef product reported shipped from Australia. This is the strongest opening for the year from South Korea since 2014 and it places current beef export demand nearly 8% above the five-year average pattern.
China has also come out of the blocks with improved flows, compared to last season. There was 10,556 tonnes of beef exported during January 2023 from Australia to China, the strongest start to the year since 2020. Opening flows of beef to China sit just 10% under the five-year average for January.
Australia’s number one destination for beef exports, Japan, showed a stronger start to 2023 too with 11,954 tonnes swt consigned over the month. These volumes are 17% higher than those seen during January 2022, but still sit well short of the five-year average pattern by about 22%, so there is still plenty of catchup to be seen this season for the Japanese Aussie beef consumer.
After two years of low beef demand from Australia the USA has also showed some promising signs over January. There was 8,953 tonnes reported exported over the month to the USA, which is 32% higher than the opening gambit in 2022 and the highest January trade volumes since 2020.
However, like the Japanese, the US beef consumer has some catchup to undertake too as current volumes are running about 20% under the five-year average for January. At least it is a marked improvement on the 2022 season which saw demand from the USA run more than 30% under trend.
