The Australian barley trade is expected to shift back to China from the surging Saudi Arabian market after the resolution of a dispute over tariffs that wiped out nearly $1bn a year in exports. China slapped 80.5% tariffs on the grain in 2020 after a dispute with the Morrison government, forcing Australian growers to find new markets. At its peak, the Chinese market imported almost 70% of Australia’s barley. However, since 2020, much of that grain was redirected to Saudi Arabia in a move welcomed by farm advocates and the…
Tag: Rural Australia
Australia politics live: ballooning rental prices to fuel inflation, Treasury says
From 31m ago Inflation in rental prices expected to increase: Treasury You may have noticed he mentioned rental increases there. It is not great news for that already tight market, according to Treasury: Rising housing costs remain a source of cost-of-living pressures for many households. Inflation in newly advertised rental prices has been rising sharply for around a year, reaching 10 per cent nationally in January. The national vacancy rate has reached a near-record low of around 1%. Despite the slowdown in population growth during the pandemic, underlying demand for…
As more space junk falls to Earth, should we be worried?
Last week, debris from a suspected Chinese booster rocket made an uncontrolled return to Earth, reportedly falling just metres from villages in Malaysia and Indonesia, and triggering a rebuke from Nasa. This follows the recent discovery of SpaceX debris on a sheep farm in regional NSW. Jane Lee speaks to ANU astrophysicist Dr Brad Tucker and reporter Natasha May about why more space junk is falling to Earth, what risks it poses to our safety How to listen to podcasts: everything you need to know The Guardian
Our global food supply is at risk when high gas prices limit the creation of fertiliser | Andrew Whitelaw
If water is the source of life, fertiliser is the source of scaleable food production. The increasing cost of fertiliser is one of the largest contributors to a “cost-price” squeeze affecting the farmers of major agricultural products in Australia and globally. The cost of food is increasing in step with the cost of producing that food and, in the past quarter in Australia, we have seen food inflation increase by 2.8% – the fourth-highest quarter since the turn of the century. The price of wheat, the main staple for much…