Australia exported 292,347t of chickpeas in February 2026. Photo: GRDC

AUSTRALIA exported 292,347 tonnes of chickpeas and 179,335 tonnes of lentils in February, according to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The chickpea figure is on par with the 294,134t exported in February 2025, and more than triple the 89,420t shipped in January 2026, with India on 231,197t the major market.

Australia’s second and third-biggest markets for February-shipped chickpeas were Pakistan on 45,564t and the United Arab Emirates on 5302, followed closely by Nepal on 4154t.

The UAE is unlikely to feature in March figures, given the conflict between Iran and US-Israeli forces which effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz to commercial traffic since March 1.

However, the two-week ceasefire announced yesterday between the US and Iran may reopen the ports in countries which buy Australian pulses, including Bahrain, Qatar, and the UAE, to imports.

On lentils, the February figure is down 36 percent from the January total of 280,314t, with India on 81,364t and Bangladesh on 44,367t the two biggest markets.

Sri Lanka on 20,804t and Egypt on 20,072t were the third and fourth-biggest markets.

The February 2026 lentil export figure is well above the 147,924t shipped in February 2025.

Table 1: Australia’s December 2025 and January and February 2026 chickpea exports. Source: ABS

Table 2: Australia’s December 2025 and January and February 2026 lentil exports. Source: ABS