September 6, 2011

 

Ukrainian grain exports fall

 

 

Ukraine's grain export decreased between July and August this year as compared to last year, declining by 22% to reach 1.8 million tonnes, Ukrainian Agrarian Confederation (UAC) said Monday (Sep 5).

 

UAC's director, Serhiy Stoyanov, said grain export duties caused the fall in shipments because they made Ukrainian grain less competitive on the global market, which has seen Russian grain flood back in after a near year-long export ban following severe drought in 2010.

 

The local union of traders and producers said in a statement the volume had included about one million tonnes of barley, 700,000 tonnes of wheat and 100,000 tonnes of other cereals.

 

Kiev-based ProAgro consultancy said in a report that Ukrainian wheat had been supplied mostly to Spain (258,000 tonnes), Italy (78,100 tonnes), Portugal (36,500 tonnes), India (33,000 tonnes) and Israel (29,600 tonnes).

 

Ukrainian barley went mostly to Saudi Arabia.

 

The Farm Ministry, however, said the volume of exports had reached 2.1 million tonnes in July-August. The ministry declined to give more details.

 

In July, Ukraine replaced grain export quotas with export duties, which will be in force until January 1, 2012.

 

Export duty on wheat is 9% but no less than EUR17 (US$23.92) per tonne. Export duty on barley is 14% and no less than EUR23 (US$32.37) per tonne. Export duty on corn is 12% and no less than EUR12 (US$28.14)

 

Stoyanov said cheap Russian grain dominated the market and its neighbour had sold abroad about 5.5 million tonnes of cereals in July-August.

 

Ukraine's Farm Ministry last week proposed cancelling grain export duties in a bid to increase export shipments, but a senior Farm Ministry official said on Monday the proposal had been refused.

 

Ukraine, which forecast a bumper 2011 grain harvest of at least 51 million tonnes, plans to export 20-25 million tonnes of grain in 2011/12, against 12.7 million in 2010/11, but current exports are too low to meet the forecast.