November 16, 2009

Russia's grain harvest exceeds estimates

Russia's grain crop, by raw weight, has exceeded 100 million tonnes with some fields yet to be harvested, surpassing the pessimistic estimates by the agriculture ministry.

Russia has harvested 101.4 million tonnes by bunker weight, said the ministry.

While the figure includes some waste, cleaning and drying should not reduce the crop far below 94 million tonnes, which is above the ministry's 93 million tonnes estimate but in line with industry forecasts.

Russia’s grain crop enjoyed a third consecutive year of benign winter conditions and a record yield for Siberia's spring crop, which offset damage from dry weather in the Volga valley. 

Persistent drought destroyed a reported 3.2m hectares of grain area, but yields from the harvested area were remarkably high considering the drought, the USDA said, lifting its estimate for Russia's wheat crop by two million tonnes to 59.5 million tonnes.

The improved yield indicates rising competition from Russia and its fellow Black Sea grain states for European exporters, and the USDA said Russia has become the price leader in export markets with abundant supplies of its low-priced wheat. 

Black Sea exporters are becoming increasingly more aggressive in the world market at the expense of the EU, said the USDA.