The Almond Board of California has released the March Almond Position Report
ALMONDS:
The Almond Board of California has released the March Almond Position Report with shipments of +161million pounds compared to last year’s +190 million pounds for a decrease of 15.3 percent.
Last year, we had a record shipment month due to the resolution of the port slowdown/strike in the west coast of the USA. This shipment report is considered a good report when compared to the shipments of the past few years. The shipments of 161 million pounds is the third (3rd) highest shipment month we have ever had. Most industry experts expected a shipment number of 150 to 160 million pounds.
YEAR TO DATE SHIPMENTS: +1.153 billion pounds compared to last year +1.248 billion pounds for a decrease of 7.65 percent.
CROP RECEIPTS: The crop receipts are now at 1.886 billion pounds. 
CURRENCY: The 1 Euro is now at $1.13 dollars.
NEW CROP: The new crop continues to develop with our excellent weather conditions in California. Temperatures in March and April have been relatively cool with sporadic rains each week providing excellent growing conditions. Kernels are developing and sizing at this time. Industry experts believe the pollinators , Carmel/Monterey/Butte/Padre/Cal varieties ,all look excellent while the Nonpareils are mentioned with some orchards looking good and others looking average. Industry experts offer various opinions on the new crop being between +2.0 to 2.15 billion pounds. An unofficial estimate was released today at +2.06 billion pounds.
INVENTORY: The California packers primarily have larger size Cal/Carmel and Nonpareil varieties remaining inventory. Most small sizes have been sold already.
PRICING: The market prices have stabilized during the recent weeks. Many markets have entered and are purchasing for near-by shipments and new crop shipments. The following markets have all been active in buying: USA, China, India, Europe, and Middle East. The unofficial crop estimate will stabilize the market and most likely firm the market by 5-10 cents per pound.
APRIL SHIPMENTS: Last year shipments were extremely strong as we were still catching up after the port strike/slowdowns in California. Thus, we expect the April shipments to be slightly lower than last years.