EL NINO GATHERS FORCEDryness brought by El Nino has already disrupted crop planting across large parts of Asia, including India, Southeast Asia and Australia, while shortages of fertiliser and diesel caused by the Iran war add to global food production risks. The outlook could worsen, as an already strong El Nino will intensify in the fourth quarter and early next year, said Chris Hyde, a U.S.-based meteorologist at satellite data and imagery firm SkyFi. A warming of ocean surface temperatures in the eastern and central Pacific, the El Nino weather phenomenon typically brings dryness to much of Asia and boosts rainfall across the Americas. In 1997-98 and 2015-16, severe El Nino episodes slashed production of key crops, fuelling food shortages, inflation and sapping economic growth. Global palm oil stocks stand near historic highs, although Indonesia's aggressive biodiesel programme is likely to trim inventories in coming months.