South Korean feed mills opt for wheat as corn price soars

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Publish time:6/17/2008 12:00:00 AM      Source: www.cnchemicals.com
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June 17, 2008

South Korean feed mills opt for wheat as corn price soars

South Korean feed manufacturers have signed deals to import 110,000 tonnes of feed wheat in the face of soaring corn prices.

Corn prices have surged 65 percent so far this year to hit record highs.

Korea Feed Association and Major Feedmill Group signed deals to buy two cargoes of 55,000 tonnes each on Friday at US$368.90 a tonne, including cost and freight.

Traders said the cargoes would arrive in November and December.

South Korea, the world's third-largest corn importer, bought wheat as global prices have fallen by a third from a record high in March, while corn prices hit record peaks.

CBOT corn hit a record US$7.57 a bushel on Monday (June 16, 2008),and has jumped by a quarter this month.

Meanwhile, prices of wheat, which can be used as a substitute for corn in some grades of animal feed, have risen only 15 percent during the same period to US$8.89.

Yet traders said the shift to wheat is unlikely to be huge, as feed makers have to rely on corn as a major nutrition source.

For every four to five cargoes of corn, we can add one cargo of wheat to make cattle feed, but not more than that, one trader said.