FLC joins South Korea corn buying with $212/mt Black Sea swoop

19 Feb 2020 | Tim Worledge

South Korea’s Feed Leaders Committee (FLC) has purchased 68,000 mt of Black Sea corn overnight in the latest private deal to mark the return of the country’s feed making sector, market sources told Agricensus Wednesday.

The company picked up the cargo from Glencore after a burst of buying from rival associations Major Feedmills Group (MFG) and Nonghyup Feed Inc (NOFI), which takes national corn buying since the start of the week to 334,000 mt.

The deal was concluded at $211.74/mt CFR, in line with many of the other trades heard concluded this week, and were for Black Sea loading dates of March 15-April 15, suggesting an early June arrival date.

The flurry of buying is the latest sign that South Korea’s feed sector is now focussing on later June arrival cargoes, allowing it access a wider array of supply options as Argentina’s early harvest begins to reach the market.

Meanwhile, Ukraine is also winding down its huge harvest.

Alongside that, South Africa is also on course to deliver a big harvest this year while the US continues to show availability, despite concerns about quality, particularly from the Pacific Northwest.

For more information on South Korea’s buying, please see our Tender Dashboard.