The USDA notes that shipments of almonds in May 2019 amounted to 810 57 tons, which is 13% more than last year. Since the beginning of the year, shipments amount to more than 881,783 tons, this is within 1% of last year’s figures. New sales in May amounted to 48,988 tons, which will lead to a continued increase in supply in the future. In addition, in mild weather, it is likely that the harvest may appear later. Farmers will not be ready to ship a new crop by the end of September / October. Insufficient supply to meet the early demand for a new crop can create a tense situation in the market for this industry
The increase in supply in May was due to demand in the markets of India and China. Chinese shipments in May amounted to almost 2,721 tons, compared with 816 tons last year. India continues to show impressive growth, increasing volumes by 12% over last year. May shipments amounted to 8164 tons compared to 4490 tons in May last year. Shipments to India have already overcome the threshold of 90718 tons. Since the beginning of the year, shipments to India have amounted to 91535 tons. Australian domestic demand has increased and in order to meet upcoming seasonal needs, Australians will turn to other markets.
Shipments to the EU as a whole dropped by 4%, while in the Middle East they grew by 3% from the beginning of the year, despite the fact that in Turkey the volume of shipments dropped by 30%. These figures demonstrate the versatility of the almond industry, not only in products, but also in relation to supplies. High demand in many global markets allows almonds to adapt to flexible structure and demand.