Apricot Update... Turkey 11.4.16

Apricot Update

Exports for March were well ahead of expectations at 6,581 tons compared to 3,953 tons last year, an increase of 66%

Exports year to date are 58,494 tons compared to 36,825 last year, an increase of 59%

Total consumption including domestic is approximately 63,000 tons with total supply at 80,000 tons, leaving 17,000 tons for the last 4 months of the season. It looks tight.

Following three nights of frost during the middle of March, the weather has now settled down to normal. It is unclear how much damage has been done by the frost, with estimates ranging between 30% and 60%,and with another 3 weeks of potential frost risk, it is still to early to put a number on the new crop, but if things go well for the rest of April, then we would expect total availability to be a little ahead of last year.

Prices are expected to remain steady for the remainder of the crop as supply is dwindling, only large sizes are left.