Originally published by Commonwealth Bank of Australia
Queensland’s Horticultural industry will be impacted by cyclone Debbie. A few cotton crops may be impacted, as the rain may downgrade the quality. But it’s the food we’re focussed on. The crop regions most affected are described as a “food bowl”. The food bowl includes sugar‑cane (a rather hardy plant), tomatoes (I say tomatoes), capsicums, eggplant, pumpkin, cucumber, beans and corn. I know what you’re thinking, the size of that ever diminishing sumo salad just got even smaller. The $12 buck Sumo price may only get us a few lettuce leaves and a hand full of chickpeas. Never mind, the Chinese takeout won’t change, there’s never been any vegies in there. The good news is the Banana crops are north of the devastation. Word around the CBA watercooler (actually the fruit bowl), had been that banana prices could spike again. Unlikely this time around.
It’s not all bad news for farmers, however. The dump of rain is always good for livestock, and useful ahead of winter cropping. The heavy rain will set up Queensland’s winter crop (wheat/barley/chickpeas) which will start planting in a few weeks. To my knowledge wheat and barley are used in making beer, and chickpeas are mainly used in food fights. So we should be good.
We are interested in the likely impact on inflation. And we have some awesome base effects coming through as it is.
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