Queensland sites including GrainCorp’s Thallon depot received large volumes of high-quality wheat during the 2021 harvest. Photo: Dan Mulkerin

AUSTRALIA exported 1,630,698 tonnes of wheat in November 2021, up 10 per cent from 1,478,241t in October, according to the latest export data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

China was the biggest market for the month, taking 669,657t, followed by Indonesia on 256,929t and The Philippines on 176,365t.

Containerised exports at 237,349t were almost triple the 79,668t shipped in November 2020, and up 3pc from the 230,883t shipped in October 2021.

In bulk, November 2021 exports at 1,393,349t were more than triple the 425,263t shipped in November 2020, and up 12pc from the 1,247,358t exported in October 2021.

The big upswing in the year-on-year figures indicates the bumper crop harvested in Queensland last year, and the large carry-out, in New South Wales in particular.

The NSW carry-out buffered export programs against the impact of a rain-delayed 2021 harvest, as did Western Australia’s strong and early start in its record harvest.

NSW on 646,985t was the biggest exporter of wheat including durum by volume in November 2021, followed by WA on 360,828t and Victoria on 270,382t.

Durum exports for November at 1504t are down from 28,877t in October, and mark the rundown of durum stocks from the 2020-21 crop.

Table 1: Australian containerised wheat and durum exports in September, October and November 2021. Source: ABS

Table 1: Australian bulk wheat and durum exports in September, October and November 2021. Source: ABS