Grain Highlights 04.04.2022

Safras & Mercado have raised their forecast for the corn production in Brazil in 2021/22 to 118.16 million tons from 115.68 million tons in the February estimate and 91.47 million tons in 2020/21.

- SovEcon has raised its forecast for wheat exports from Russia in 2021/22 by 0.4 million tons to 33.9 million tons.

- Over the week of March 28 - April 3, 2022, 376,000 tons of grain were exported from the Russian port of Novorossiysk (+43% compared to the previous week), including 327,800 tons of wheat, 27,000 tons of corn, 16,000 tons of barley and 5,200 tons of soybeans. The largest customers were Turkey with 177,100 tons and Egypt with 117,900 tons.

- According to the Russian Grain Union, the export of wheat from Russia reached 1.914 million tons in March (+53% compared to March 2021). Barley exports were 130,000 tons (950,000) and corn exports reached 282,000 tons (981,000).

- The authorities in Ukraine predict that the areas sown with spring crops in the country in 2022 will reach 13.44 million hectares, which is 3.48 million hectares less than the previous year.

- Strategie Grains forecasts a total sunseed production in the EU in 2022 of 10.2 million tons (+0.38 compared to the previous estimate, 10.37 in 2021 and 8.76 in 2020). The rapeseed production will be 18.2 million tons (16.99 and 16.63), and the soybean production will reach 2.90 million tons (2.7 and 2.64).

- On Friday, commodity funds in Chicago were net sellers of 4,000 contracts of corn, 14,500 contracts of soybeans and 3,500 contracts of wheat.

- Safras & Mercado have raised their forecast for the corn production in Brazil in 2021/22 to 118.16 million tons from 115.68 million tons in the February estimate and 91.47 million tons in 2020/21. The first corn production will be 21.16 million tons (+0.8 and 21.65) and the second corn production is expected at 84.58 million tons (83.34 and 57.85). The corn production in Mato Grosso ir projected to reach 37 million tons.

- At the end of last week, a ship with 33,000 tons of canola left the United States for Australia.

- In March, imports of palm oil in India reached 550,000 tons (454,800 in February), sunseed oil imports wre 210,000 tons (152,200) and soyoil imports were 310,000 tons (-18%). Palm oil imports will remain high in April.

- Saudi Arabia bought 625,000 tons of wheat from the EU, North and South America and Australia at an average price of 422.47 USD/ton C&F and delivery within September - November.

- Iraq has bought about 100,000 tons of milling wheat, most likely from Germany at a price of 570 USD/ton C&F.