EU: No maltster can accept such losses for another year, according to experts
For the crop year 2005, delivery 2006, many malt sales were done at prices, which will leave losses of € 20,-/30,- per ton in the maltsters' books. Balance sheets were bad for 2005, but will be worse for 2006, malt market experts posted on April 3.
No maltster, and no maltster's banker, can accept such losses for another year. The turning point of malt markets came closer, when maltsters started to reject low bids from Thailand and South America in the late months of 2005.
British malting companies had been the first to close older capacities, they were followed by French and German firms.
Germans and Scandinavians kept some malthouses shut for limited periods, which took further pressure from the market. A German merger and a Danish acquisition created stronger groups, albeit at a still modest level. The real shock was the insolvency of the Weissheimer maltings in Germany and Hungary. The market had suspected that the former No. 1 in Germany had been in trouble, but expected that they would overcome their problems. Their downfall (which may not be final yet) sent waves through the market and brought about greater caution in the malting industries and at least some apprehension amongst the brewers.
It is not difficult to predict for the new campaign that maltsters will resist fiercely a reduction of their malting margins to unprofitable levels. They are helped by the fact that unsold stocks have been reduced sharply.
EU malt exports run a bit below the level of 2004/05, while a much bigger loss of exports had been predicted at the beginning of the campaign.
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