Drier and warmer weather likely for autumn – BOM

Autumn (March to May) rainfall is likely to be below-average for the majority of Australia, according to the latest weather outlook from the Bureau of Meteorology; the southern two-thirds of the country have a less than 35% chance of exceeding the median rainfall for the three month period.  The exceptions are northwest WA, the Top End in the NT, the Cape York Peninsula and east coast of Queensland, and marginal parts of the NSW coastline, which all have a roughly equal chance of a wetter or drier autumn.

The outlook is drawn from higher than usual pressure forecast over western and southern parts of the country during autumn – which would likely result in fewer rain-bearing systems crossing the coast.

Along with drier conditions, autumn is likely to bring warmer than average temperatures across most of the nation – except for the NT, where daytime temperatures are likely to be cooler. Most of southern and eastern Australia has a more than 75% chance of exceeding average daytime temperatures.

For southern producers, the outlook is not overly positive, and if it comes to fruition, will likely see a reduction in restocker activity – which has been driving the young cattle  and lamb markets over the last year.