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Highlights:
Turkey: The Government of Turkey (GOT) announced the support price for top quality Aegean region tobacco at TL 1,400,000 per kg, a 55- percent increase from last year. The top price is paid for bales containing 80 to 100 percent grade A tobacco. The GOT announced a penalty reduction of TL 17,500 per kg for each successive percentage below 80 percent grade A tobacco.
The Government of Turkey established a tobacco production quota of 225,000 tons for 1999. Sources also reported that the Marmaran region and the Black Sea region were within the quota levels. However, the Aegean, East, and Southeastern region production is expected to exceed the quota by 36,000 tons in 1999. TEKEL is predicted to buy the surplus at a later date. No date has been announced.
Mexico: Mexican leaf production is expected to decrease in 1999. Leaf quality continues to decline because of unusual wet conditions and incidences of blue mold. Mexican burley production for 1999 is estimated to total 26,819 metric tons as compared to 32,966 metric tons due to lower demand for higher price cigarettes in the domestic market and lower demand in abroad. Burley exports are expected to decline by 18 percent in 1999. However, flue-cured production is predicted to increase because of the necessity to maintain stock level and the increase demand for low and mid-priced cigarettes in the domestic market. Flue-cured tobacco production is expected to reach 14,157 tons in 1999, up nearly 19 percent. And light air-cured tobacco for 1999 is forecast at 10,432 tons, down 2 percent.
Auction Reports:
Canadian Flue-Cured Auction Update: Through the 93rd sale day of the 1998/99 Canadian flue-cured tobacco marketing season, the Ontario Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers Marketing Board reports that 59,176 metric tons of flue-cured tobacco have been sold. This represents a nearly 4- percent decrease in sales when compared to the same period of last year's marketing season. Prices in Canadian currency are averaging $3.57 (US$2.38) per kilogram, down nearly 10 percent compared to last year. So far this year, sales of "A" graded leaves account for 71 percent of purchases, down 10 percent from last year.
Canadian
Flue-Cured Auction Update |
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Quantity
in |
Average
Value per Kilogram |
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1997/98 |
1998/99 |
1997/98 |
1998/99 |
61,495 |
59,176 |
US$2.64 |
US$2.38 |
| Source: Ontario Flue-Cured Tobacco Growers Marketing Board. | |||
Exchange Rates: 1997/98 U.S.$ = CA$ 1.43
1998/99 U.S.$ = CA$ 1.50
Highlights:
USDA Announced 1999 Flue-Cured Tobacco No-Net-Cost Assessments: USDA’s Commodity Credit Corporation announced that the flue-cured tobacco no-net-cost assessment will be 2 cents on each pound of the 1999 flue-cured crop tobacco that is marketed. The corresponding assessment for imported flue-cured tobacco will be announced at a later date.
Auction Reports:
1998/99 U.S. Burley Auction Update: With the 1998/1999 U.S. burley tobacco auction winding down, gross sales of U.S. burley tobacco (type 31) reached 289,680 metric tons, down 3 percent from last year. Prices this year averaged $4.19 per kilogram, slightly up from last year. Approximately 8 percent of type 31 gross sales were placed under loan this year as compared to nearly 16 percent in 1998. All the dark tobacco markets except KY&TN eastern district fire-cured (type 22) and KY&TN western district fire-cure, (type 23) are closed. KY&TN eastern district fire-cured (type 22) reported slightly higher sales this year as compared to last year. Virginia fire-cured (type 21), one sucker (type 35), greenriver (type 36),and Virginia sun-cured (type 37) markets reported lower sales as well as lower prices compared to last year.
U.S. TRADE SUMMARY FOR JANUARY 1999
U.S. unmanufactured tobacco exports for January 1999 totaled 19,411 metric tons, valued at $113.6 million. This represents a 6-percent decrease in quantity and slightly down in value when compared to January 1998. The leading U.S. leaf export markets were: the European Union, 7,247 tons; Japan, 7,147 tons; Korea, 1,979 tons; Thailand, 995 tons; the Russian Federation, 561 tons; and the Dominican Republic, 317 tons.
Flue-cured exports for January1999 reached 14,940 metric tons, valued at $91.7 million, up 51 percent in quantity and 29 percent in value from January 1998. The leading U.S. flue-cured export markets were: Japan, 5,913 tons; European Union 5,503; Republic of Korea, 1,979 tons; Thailand, 976 tons; and the Australia, 192 tons.
Burley exports for January 1999 totaled 580 tons, valued at $4.9 million, down 58 percent in quantity and 50 percent in value from January 1998. The leading U.S. burley export markets were: the European Union, 272 tons; Philippines, 139 tons; Malaysia, 69 tons; Australia, 36 tons and the Hungary, 27 tons.
U.S. cigarette exports for January 1999 totaled 11.2 billion pieces, valued at $230.4 million, down 31 percent in quantity but down 33 percent in value from January 1998. The leading U.S. cigarette export markets were: Japan, 5.2 billion pieces; the European Union, 1.6 billion pieces (to mainly Belgium/Luxembourg which is a major transshipment point for exports to other European markets); Lebanon, 987 million pieces; Singapore, 545 million pieces; and Saudi Arabia, 372 million pieces.
U.S. exports of bulk smoking tobacco for January 1999 totaled 4,767 metric tons, valued at $44 million, down 24 percent in quantity and up 6 percent in value from January 1998. The leading export markets were: the European Union, 2,038 tons; Japan, 564 tons; Poland, 914 tons; Egypt 483 tons; and Jordan, 205 tons.
U.S. unmanufactured tobacco imports for consumption (duty paid) for January 1999 totaled 25,401 tons, valued at $89.8 million, down 15 percent in quantity and down 24 percent in value when compared to the same period. U.S. general imports (actual arrivals) of unmanufactured tobacco in 1999 totaled 19,600 tons, valued at $68.8 million. This represents an 8-percent decrease in quantity and nearly 6- percent decrease in value from the same period in 1998. Imports of oriental tobacco, the leading tobacco type imported by the United States, reached 83,551 tons, valued at $417 million in 1998, down nearly 3 percent in quantity but up 4 percent in value when compared to the same period in 1997. Flue-cured imports in January1999 totaled 8,805 tons, valued at $30.4 million, up 99 percent in quantity and 102 percent in value from January1998. Burley imports for January1999 totaled 8,633 tons, valued at $29.3 million, up 69 percent in quantity and 55 percent in value from a year ago. U.S. imports of stems and scrap tobacco in January 1999 totaled 1,674 tons, valued at $596 million, up 38 percent in quantity but down 26 percent in value from January 1998. The leading suppliers to the United States of unmanufactured tobacco imports for consumption in January 1999 were: Brazil, 6,355 tons; Malawi, 6,307 tons; the Turkey, 2,668 tons; Argentina, 1,537 tons; Zimbabwe, 1,397 tons; Canada, 1,233 tons and European Union, 1,157 tons.
1 Metric Ton = 2,204.622 Pounds
1 Pound = 0.0004536 Metric Tons
1 Kilogram = 2.2046 Pounds
1 Pound = 0.4535924 Kilograms
1 Hectare = 2.471 Acres
1 Acre = 0.4047 Hectares
Dry Weight (DW) = 88 to 92 percent of Farm Sales Weight (FSW) 1/
1/ Unmanufactured tobacco's conversion from dry weight to farm sales weight varies depending on a country's cultivation and processing conditions and practices. The average conversion factor ranges from 88 to 92 percent, but it can be as low as 60 percent.
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