Indonesia Imports Live Cattle in Record Numbers
AUSTRALIA - A sharp jump in Australian live cattle shipments during December pushed exports for the past calendar year well above that forecast for the year, as Indonesia registered its second consecutive record year.
10 February 2009
2 minute read
Live cattle exports in 2008 reached 869,545 head – up 21 per cent year-on-year, the highest annual total since 2002 (Australian Bureau of Statistics).
Underpinning the significant increase for the past year was robust demand from Indonesia, with exports reaching a record 651,196 head – up 26 per cent from 2007 (516,992 head) and 68 per cent since 2006 (386,566 head). Assisting exports for the year was a steady supply of suitable cattle out of northern Australia, with shipments out of Darwin to Indonesia increasing 32 per cent, to 340,418 head, while large numbers were also recorded out of Townsville (76,013 head), Broome (72,648 head), Wyndham (50,969 head), Geraldton (35,501 head) and Fremantle (29,484 head).
Australian live cattle exports for the past year were valued at a record A$644 million FOB, with shipments to Indonesia valued at A$420 million FOB – up 23 per cent on 2007.
Israel was Australia’s second largest live cattle market in 2008, receiving 44,109 head, followed by Libya (38,113 head), Malaysia (20,263 head), the Russian Federation (20,071 head), Japan (19,770 head) and Saudi Arabia (18,303 head). Exports to the Philippines declined 47 per cent during 2008, to 10,791 head.
Contributing to the surge in exports in 2008 was a 79 per cent increase in shipments during December, to 94,555 head – the tenth largest monthly total on record. Consistent with the rest of 2008, the majority of cattle during December was sent to Indonesia (65,260 head), with large shipments also registered to Libya (9,738 head), the Russian Federation (5,166 head), Malaysia (3,552 head) and China (3,408 head).
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