BankWest said the uncertainty surrounding the wheat market added challenges to last year's harvest season and saw many farmers sell their grain for cash.
BankWest's Rural and Regional State Manager for Western Australia Jim Watson says that some farmers may find themselves with a taxation issue for the 2005-2006 financial year if they sold their grain for cash.
"February is a good time for farmers to look at their finances and the possibility of managing any tax issues with a Farm Management Deposit," he said.
"There is also opportunity for those who already hold Farm Management Deposit accounts to withdraw these next financial year, to mitigate the effects of weaker cash flow from farming activities."
Farm Management Deposits can help farmers manage cash flow and reduce tax implications.
Mr Watson also said wool growers could take advantage of recent gains in the wool market by selling stored wool.
"With autumn shearing now on we can expect many growers to achieve higher wool returns than they expected late last year," he said.
2006 was a hard year for many West Australian farmers, not only in terms of drought but also the uncertainty that surrounded wheat marketing.
"It will be interesting to see how West Australian farmers performed last year once the 2006-2007 BankWest Benchmarks Survey data is complete," Mr Watson said.
"We are starting to collate this data now and I suspect the results may be significantly different from previous years."
"Farmers have had a difficult time over the last couple of years and the beginning of the year is a good opportunity for anyone in agribusiness to look at their finances and restructure if necessary to minimise the tax burden mid year."
ENDS
Media Inquiries:
Bridget Tombleson
Media Relations Manager
HBOS Australia
bridget.tombleson@hbosa.com.au
Tel: (08) 8449 6768 or 0407 084 359
