April 13, 2012

Ukraine to export at least seven million tonnes more grains

The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine estimates the country's grain exports at the level of 23.5 million tonnes until the end of the current MY (July 2011 - June 2012).

The Ministry expects that the country has the opportunity to export at least another seven million tonnes of grains until the end of the current MY, said Nikolai Prysiazhnyuk, Minister of Agrarian Policy, on April 11.

The Minister also said that to date Ukraine already exported 16.5 million tonnes of grains, an increase of four million tonnes compared to the same period last MY.

According N.Prysiazhnyuk, in March 2012 grain exports from Ukraine totalled 2.5 million tonnes.

As a reminder, previously Sergei Kvasha, Director of the department of economic development and agrarian market of the Ministry of Agrarian Policy, reported that the general grain exports from Ukraine in the current MY will total 23 million tonnes.

According to the Ministry, since the beginning of MY and as of April 4, 2012, Ukraine exported 15.8 million tonnes of grains, an increase of 76.7% compared to the same date last MY. The export volumes of Ukrainian corn increased to the level of 9.63 million tonnes, wheat - up 25% to 3.88 million tonnes (including 2.19 million tonnes of milling wheat and 1.7 million tonnes of feed wheat). At the same time, exports of barley decreased by 11.5% - to 2.16 million tonnes.

Since the beginning of MY and as of April 4, 2012, exports of oilseeds reduced by 12.7% compared to the same date last MY. In particular, Ukraine exported one million tonnes of rapeseed and 0.87 million tonnes of soybeans. Exports of sunflower seed totalled 107,000 tonnes, as opposed to 319,000 tonnes last year.

In 2011, Ukraine produced the record grain harvest - 56.7 million tonnes, while the domestic consumption totalled 26.7 million tonnes.