Grain Highlights 08.09.2023

During the period of July to August, Russia's wheat exports (outside the Eurasian Economic Union) reached a historical record of 9.6 million tons, surpassing the previous best performance achieved in 2018 at 8.9 million tons and the 6 million tons exported in 2022.

- During the week of September 13-19, the export tax on Russian wheat will be 4,493.7 rubles per ton (4,007.6 a week earlier). The export tax on barley will be 931.7 rubles per ton (356.9), and the export tax on corn will be 2,465.2 rubles per ton (1,954.9).

- From the beginning of the season until September 8, 2023, Ukraine has exported 5.054 million tons of grain (5.291 in 2022/23), including 2.293 million tons of wheat (1.651), 528,000 tons of barley (447,000), and 2.22 million tons of corn (3.174).

- In Ukraine, 33.7 million tons of grains and oilseeds have already been harvested. 29.309 million tons of grains have been collected with a yield of 4.38 tons per hectare, including 22.149 million tons of wheat with a yield of 4.72 tons per hectare, and 5.822 million tons of barley with a yield of 3.87. The oilseed production is 4.353 million tons, including 4 million tons of rapeseed (2.87) and 199,300 tons of sunseed (1.86).

- The Romanian government will approve a plan to modernize the infrastructure around the Constanta port to increase the capacity for grain exports, including from Ukraine. EU funds of $155.7 million will be used for this purpose. So far, railway lines leading from Ukraine to Constanta have been modernized.

- Premiums for high-protein wheat are increasing in the EU. Poland was a major producer of such wheat. Rainfall in Poland and Germany has lowered the quality of the production. Imports of wheat with 13-15% protein content are expected mainly from Canada and to some extent from the United States. During the period from July 1 to August 28, 2023, imports of Canadian wheat into the EU increased by 54% compared to the previous year.

- According to the Buenos Aires Grain Exchange's forecast for 2023/24, soybean production in Argentina will reach 50 million tons (21 in 2022/23), wheat production will be 16.5 million tons (12.1), and corn production will reach 55 million tons (34).

- Authorities in Morocco have announced a subsidy of $16.9 per ton for the import of milling wheat in September. The new production is 4.2 million tons (2.7 in 2022 and 4.9 on average for the last five years). At the beginning of the season, wheat stocks in Morocco have decreased to 1.5 million tons (2.4 and 3.6). Due to insufficient supply, imports will increase to 7 million tons according to USDA.

- Iran has purchased 18,000 tons of corn from Brazil with delivery scheduled for September 20 to October 20, 2023. The planned purchase of 120,000 tons of soymeal has not been made.