February 15, 2012

A purchase of 16,200 tonnes of grain from the 2011 harvest has been made by the Russian government on Tuesday (Feb 14) for the state's intervention fund, up 33% on the week, the United Grain Company said in a statement.

In monetary terms, grain purchases amounted to RUB74.196 million (US$2.5 million) on Tuesday, up 31.6% on the year.

The government bought 14,850 tonnes of third class wheat and 1,350 tonnes of fourth class wheat at an average price of RUB4,591 (US$152.85) and RUB4,450 (US$148.16) per tonne respectively.

At Tuesday's trade, 34 agriculture companies offered a total of 16,200 tonnes of grain.

The government started purchasing interventions on the internal grain market on November 29, 2011.

Established in 2009, the United Grain Company is the government's agent for grain purchases aimed at supporting domestic producers and increasing competition.