China Spends $1 Billion To Fight Massive Drought Wrecking Country's Wheat Crop

businessinsider.com ^ | Feb. 12, 2011, 10:55 AM | Gregory White

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

China has announced $1 billion in funding to help farmers fight the country's devastating droughts, according to The Guardian.

The country is facing its worst drought in 60 years right where it hurts the most, the wheat producing province of Shangdong.

[driftdiver]

They were already talking about massive food shortages in China. Is this due to central planning or is something else going on.

[theDentist]

In effect, we're funding it. Money doesn't create water, so they'll have to truck it it. It's like our Californian farm land that hasn't a drop. If only we could just turn on a tap and get it to flow... /s

[ozzymandus]

It’s caused by a drought. Also world commodity prices are record high. I wish I had a thousand acres of wheat out right now.

[KC_Lion]

Whhaaattt!!!!! I thought China was the model on everything! Posters here on FR give the impression that China is a Might and Powerful GOD among Nations!!!! They can do no wrong, we are their slaves, their leaders are the smartest men the world who have never ever ever ever made any sort of mistake.

Could it be that Central planning, even in the Utopia that is China, might not be working?? Or could this just be another way to Punk the US while Millions of Chinese starve, in which China will be even stronger???

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks Ernest. China’s Three Gorges Dam project (now complete) was in part intended to divert the plentiful water of the Yangtze into the Yellow River, in an effort to irrigate that river basin. The drought that has depleted the Yellow River has been worsening in recent decades, and it has nothing to do with the AGW nonsense.

Russia’s wheat crop was beaten down last year by a heat wave and drought; Australia’s was hit by locusts. A quick search or two will show this kind of thing has triggered some low level hysteria in past years as well. This year’s twist was in attributing the jihadist riots in Egypt (but not in Tunisia, Yemen, etc) on food shortages and rising food prices — and then attributing the supposed food shortages to the U.S. ethanol mandate.

http://www.google.com/search?q=australia+wheat+crop+site:freerepublic.com
http://www.google.com/search?q=russia+wheat+crop+site:freerepublic.com
http://www.google.com/search?q=south+america+wheat+crop+site:freerepublic.com

[Uncle Ike]

$1 billion??

That’s pocket change - it wouldn’t even cover bureaucratic overhead if this were a Democrat program here......

[mdmathis6]

We’ve had lots of snow meaning lots of water in wheat producing regions....I wonder if the US is in for a huge bumper crop. If the chinese are having food issues and we have a good harvest...it might mean we could get some of that Chinese held US debt shall we say...ameliorated?(in a way of course that helps them save face, of course)

[DallasDeb]

I think we may be able to play Let’s Make a Deal with the Chicoms.

[Flavius]

Maybe they built dam at wrone dam place

[Rashputin]

So, limits on exports so wheat stays reasonable here.

And adjustments due to foreign currency manipulations.

What's export wheat these days, $300 a bushel? And corn about $250 so we can have plenty of ethanol and still afford corn on the cob and beef? At least with the corn you can always ship them ethanol to eat.

And as an aside, does anyone know if the Three Gorges Dam project could end up like Aswan has, making things worse not better?

Regards

[Zhang Fei]

Money doesn't create water, so they'll have to truck it it.

They're digging wells.

[all_mighty_dollar]

>>>>>>>>>>So, limits on exports so wheat stays reasonable here.<<<<<<<<<<<<

Too late maybe? per IPTV 2-11-11

Sur Martin re Soybean 2011 crop essentially sold already.......

Market-to-Market

Sue Martin Analyzes the Volatile Commodity Markets

posted on February 11, 2011

“...But, you know, what, that’s a little way of maybe rationing us for the moment, because we’ve got 89 percent of our beans that were targeted for export by the USDA for the whole year already sold. And so we need to slow our pace up a little bit. Half of the year is still here.

Pearson: Sue, with these bean prices, you’ve got to make sales here too, don’t you?

Martin: Absolutely. We pulled the trigger when we hit 13.98 this week on November beans for about 20 percent. We missed our trigger on the March beans when we said to sell old crop 25 percent of what you have left if you touch 1458. Unfortunately we got within 2 1/2 cents and we didn’t get it. But I think it will come back. In fact, I’m almost tempted now to pull that sell recommendation on old crop and step back because now if we come up after a lower weekly close and look at that level, we’re probably going to go higher. So I think we still have some better times yet...”

http://www.iptv.org/mtom/episode.cfm/3624/video/mtom_20110211_3624

[theDentist]

Oh. Well don’t I feel dumber than a box of rocks. :-)