When it became clear this fall Western Canadian wheat farmers would enjoy a bumper harvest, the question turned to whether transportation bottlenecks would hamper the crop from getting to a world grappling with shortfalls. A surge in wheat exports shows the grain is getting through.
The value of wheat exports jumped 65 per cent in September from the previous month to $1.1-billion, driven by both stronger volumes and prices that remain high after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
With the boom in wheat exports, agricultural goods were the biggest contributor to a rebound in overall exports for Canada. That’s helping to bolster the economy at a time when other sectors are weakening. In August GDP for the agriculture, forestry and fishing sector rose 26 per cent from 2021, when severe drought decimated crops.
“While crop production (ex cannabis) only accounts for a bit more than one per cent of the economy, this huge change of fortunes has added roughly half a point to overall growth all by itself,” BMO chief economist Doug Porter wrote in a note.
The strength should continue, too. This week CN Rail said October was the best month ever for Western Canadian grain movements on its network.
Jason Kirby