WORLD WHEAT CROP.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LIX, Issue 205, 31 July 1939, Page 4

WORLD WHEAT CROP.

LAST YEAR'S RECORD. GERMANY'S SECURITY STOCK. A record world crop of wheat in 1938-39, probably a fifth greater than that of the previous year, abundant supplies of barley, oats and rye, and the attendant collapse of grain prices arc some of the facts which emerge from a study of the Imperial Economic Committee's annual review of grain crops in 1939. In this publication au attempt has been made to assess the supply position and the consumption of grain in most of the chief consuming countries. The obscurity of the stock position in the majority of countries renders an accurate estimation of consumption impossible, but jt is clear that there are ample supplies of grain available for utilisation in 1938-39. It also appears that European importing countries, in particular Germany, have been storing part of the available supply as.security stock. ' Maize during 1938 presented fea-tures'"of'-unusual interest. As a rule, importing countries derive most of their requirements from Argentina, but in 1937-38 a short crop was obtained and the resultant deficiency was made up bv the United States. But although the United States had a normal crop in 1938, an appreciable proportion of it was sealed against loan and did not appear on the international market, with the result that for some weeks in the last quarter of 1938 prices for maize in the United Kingdom were above those for the best quality wheat. In most countries official assistance has been granted to wheat growers, either to maintain their purchasing power or as a definite step toward self-sufficiency in foodstuffs. The burdensome wheat supplies of 3 938-39 ha.ve caused an intensification of Government activity, and the review summarises the measures taken in the chief exporting countries. A feature of the 1938-39 grain trade was the appearance of several Governments upon the' international market, and this factor, together with recurring European crises, introduced new elements into the trade. The volume of trade in pram has, according to the report, definitely declined since 1931, exports of wheat for example having fallen from nearly 33 000,000 tons in 1931 to about 13,300,000 lons in 1937. A slight improvement occurred in 1938 and shipments in the early months bl 1939 have again been heavier.