Big Producers Don't Always Equal Big Exporters

China has the world's largest sheep flock, but it's not always the biggest supplier of sheepmeat. In fact, only a little more than half the time is the country producing the most also the country exporting the most.

Across 13 commodities, the biggest producer and exporter are different countries in six cases. This matters because production tells us where a commodity is grown, while exports tell us who the rest of the world relies upon.

China produces enormous volumes, but it also has an enormous domestic market waiting to consume them. For example, China grows about 141 million tonnes of wheat, while Russia produces considerably less.

However, if Russian exports are disrupted by poor weather or government intervention, importing countries must find replacement tonnes elsewhere. This is why events in Russia can have such an immediate effect on international wheat prices.