Grain Highlights 09.06.2023

As of June 5, 2023, 88% of the soft winter wheat areas in France are in good and excellent condition (91% a week earlier).

During the week of June 1-7, grain exports from Russia reached 630,100 tons, which is a 30% increase compared to the previous year's 486,000 tons. Out of the total, 621,000 tons were wheat and 10,000 tons were corn. The largest buyers for wheat were Egypt with 137,900 tons and Turkey with 82,000 tons.

In May, Russia exported 3.803 million tons of wheat, which is a 3% increase compared to April. The largest customer was Turkey with over 1 million tons of deliveries, followed by Egypt with 692,000 tons and Yemen with 324,000 tons.

In May 2023, Russia's soyoil exports reached 68,000 tons, showing an 85% increase compared to April. The major buyers were India with 25,000 tons and China with 14,000 tons.

From June 14 to 20, the export tax on Russian wheat will be 2,629.6 rubles/ton (previously 2,856.3 rubles/ton), while barley will remain duty-free, and corn will have an export tax of 1,189.6 rubles/ton (previously 1,214.4 rubles/ton).

According to OleoScope's forecast, Russia is expected to export over 5.9 million tons of sunseed oil in the current season, which is a 28.3% increase compared to the previous season's 4.6 million tons. In the first 8 months of the season, 3.6 million tons of oil were exported, including 556,000 tons to China, 342,000 tons to Turkey, 280,000 tons to India, and 251,000 tons to Iran.

As of June 5, 2023, 88% of the soft winter wheat areas in France are in good and excellent condition (compared to 91% the previous week). The lowest recorded percentage was 66% in 2011. 87% of the winter barley crops are in good and excellent condition, while spring barley and corn are at 89% and 88% respectively.

In Argentina, 94% of the soybean areas for the 2022/23 crop have been harvested, with a total production of 21 million tons, according to the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange. About one-third of the corn acreage has been harvested, with an expected total production of 36 million tons. Wheat has been sown on 20% of the planned 6.3 million hectares, and the recent rainfall has created favorable conditions for crop development.

Heavy rainfall in China is delaying the harvesting campaign of wheat, reducing yields, and impacting quality. Henan province, which is the largest wheat producer in the country, is experiencing the worst conditions in the past 10 years.

According to the Ministry of Agriculture of India's forecast, the country's wheat production in 2023 is expected to reach a record 112.7 million tons, surpassing the 2022 figure of 107.74 million tons.

The Iraqi state company has purchased 3 million tons of wheat from local farmers for the 2023/24 crop. The production is expected to be good, reaching 4.2 million tons, which is a 13% increase compared to the five-year average. The previous production in 2022/23 was 3 million tons. Import for the upcoming season will be 3 million tons, a slight decrease compared to the previous year.

Tunisia has announced a tender to purchase 100,000 tons of milling wheat of any origin, with delivery scheduled for July-August. In the previous tender held in late April, 75,000 tons of milling wheat were purchased at a price range of 304.80 to 311.19 USD/ton C&F, with delivery scheduled for June-July.