Survey finds drought still hurting Australian agribusiness
Survey finds drought still hurting Australian agribusiness A survey by the National Bank of Australia (NAB) shows the drought is still hurting agribusiness conditions, and the short-term outlook remains weak.
During the three months to March, wheat, cotton, sugar, dairy and beef producers and the farm transport sector reported very weak sales, poor profits and high costs. However, the drought has been a positive for some industries, the survey reports, including water and feed cartage operators, as well as beverage manufacturers. NAB chief economist Alan Oster said confidence in the rural sector was starting to improve as farmers prepared for a break in the drought.
"Profitability is being hurt very badly, so it' really a story of continuing near term pain but there is some optimism in the future," he said.
