Hopes rise as Euro strengthens

By Farmers Weekly staff

ARABLE farmers are keeping everything crossed as the Euro continues to strengthen against the Pound.

Area aid payments for 2000 will be converted to sterling using the average exchange rate between the two currencies during June.

The Euros average value for the first half of the month stood at 62.8p, well above the recent 57p low, helped by a 0.5% boost in eurozone interest rates last week.

If the Euro remains at that level for the rest of the month, UK growers will receive 10% more in their area aid cheques than they would have done at the 57p rate.

But payments would still be about 6% lower than last year. English cereal growers, for example, would receive about 224/ha (91/acre), a 15/ha drop.

The total includes the second tranche of agrimoney compensation triggered by the introduction of the Euro, and assumes a 2% over-planting penalty.

1 = 63.16p at time of writing