February 17, 2012

 

Iran to import 63,000 tonnes Ukrainian corn

 

 

In coming weeks, 63,000 tonnes of Ukrainian corn is being planned by traders to be shipped to Iran, Kiev-based ProAgro agriculture consultancy said on Thursday (Feb 16).

 

It also said traders had exported 16,500 tonnes of corn and 10,500 tonnes of sunflower oil to Iran so far in February.

 

ProAgro said the cargo with corn had left Ukraine on February 3 for Bandar Imam Khomeini (BIK) port, while a vessel with 10,500 tonnes of sunoil left Ukraine on February 10. Ukrainian sunoil is due to be unloaded in the Iranian port of Bandar-e-Abbas.

 

Ukraine is the world's largest exporter of sunflower oil and a leading European exporter of corn. The former Soviet republic plans to export 3.1 million tonnes of sunoil and at least 10 million tonnes of corn in the 2011/12 season.

 

Ukrainian and foreign traders said in early February that they were no longer booking cargoes on Iranian ships to transport grain exports from Ukraine because of difficulties with payments following EU sanctions on Iran.

 

The EU agreed in January to freeze the assets of Iran's central bank as part of further sanctions. It was not clear how Iran had paid for the latest shipments of Ukrainian corn and sunoil.

 

Ukraine's marine corn exports to Iran fell to 130,000 tonnes in January from 217,000 tonnes in December and 238,000 tonnes in November.

 

Iran in 2011/12 is expected to import around 4.5 million tonnes of grain, including about 3.5 million tonnes of corn, the leading world grain for animal feed, according to International Grains Council figures.

 

Iran ranks among the top 10 global importers of corn. Its key corn suppliers include Brazil, Argentina and Ukraine.

 

Iran's total grains production for 2011/12 is forecast at 18.7 million tonnes, down from 20.7 million a year earlier. Wheat production is seen at 13.8 million tonnes versus 15.5 million, potentially drawing in more imports from Russia and Kazakhstan, traditional suppliers of high quality wheat.

 

Commodities traders last week said Iran was turning to barter - offering gold bullion in overseas vaults or tanker loads of oil - in return for food as new financial sanctions have hurt its ability to import basic staples for its 74 million people.

 

Difficulty paying for urgent import needs has contributed to sharp rises in the prices of basic foodstuffs, causing hardship for Iranians with just weeks to go before an election seen as a referendum on President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's economic policies.

 

New sanctions imposed by the US and EU to punish Iran for its nuclear programme do not bar firms from selling Iran food but they make it difficult to carry out the international financial transactions needed to pay for it.