I should be retiring to bed, but I made the foolish mistake of opening my computer and browsing some files that arrived in the afternoon. One that caught my attention and I thought I should share here is the map showing La Niña prospects for the 2025-26 summer season.
As you can see on the South African map, the summer crop-growing regions of our country are set to receive above-normal rainfall. This underscores the point I have made repeatedly in these notes, namely that the farmers’ optimism about planting 4.5 million hectares of summer grains and oilseeds is partly based on expected favourable weather conditions (up 1% year-on-year).
We have already started receiving nice rains, and we expect them to continue. The crop plantings are also proceeding well. Notably, the rainy weather supports all agricultural activities, not just the grain and oilseeds I mentioned above.
So, all things considered, it does appear that we are heading to another favourable agricultural season in 2026.
Okay, now, I must head to bed.
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