07/17/06 Exports continue to grow

USDA says that agricultural exports have grown so far this fiscal year. Nora Brooks of the Economic Research Service says those exports are ten percent ahead of where they were last year. BROOKS "The exports at 46.6 billion which is about 3.5 billion higher than the same time in fiscal 2005. The values of cotton, red meat, corn and fruit and nuts are all substantially higher than last year. Our corn shipments to South Korea have grown every month since January. Cotton to China continues to account for about half of our cotton shipments." After falling nine percent from March to April, US agricultural imports rose by three percent from April to May. Those imports totaled 43.2 billion dollars this fiscal year, a jump of 4.6 billion from last year. That means we have a 3.3 billion dollar ag trade surplus. Bad news for Idaho sugarbeet growers is the fact that the fastest growing import is sugar which has doubled in import value compared to the first eight months of fiscal year 2005. Voice of Idaho Agriculture