ABSTRACT
In mid-November the PRC government reported that drought of a magnitude rarely seen in the past century was affecting northern China. By focusing on poor growing conditions, one wonders if the Chinese leadership (as during the GLF) was preparing to deflect attention from further adverse effects of its policies. During October, because of Australia’s drought, the AWB could agree to sell the Chinese only 500,000 tonnes of wheat on twelve month credits. This represented just a small portion of the grain the Chinese needed, for the first half of 1966, and had contracted for under the six month Sino-Australian agreement signed in March.
