Articles By Masha Belikova

The Russian Grain Exporters Union has released a list of countries that will be able to receive Russian grains and agricultural products without the use of intermediaries, according to a note published in the group's official telegram channel on Friday October 18.

Russia’s wheat export volumes from Black Sea ports totaled 959,027 tonnes in the week ended Thursday October 17, down by 16% week on week from 1.1 million tonnes, a Fastmarkets analysis shows.

The Russian government continued to raise the wheat export tax for the October 23-29 period, while decreasing the tax for barley and corn, according to a note published by the country’s agriculture ministry on Friday October 18.

Taiwanese feed importer MFIG has picked up a 65,000 tonnes of Brazil corn for December-January shipment in a tender closed on Friday October 18, sources told Fastmarkets.

Winter crops revised back up in Western Australia (WA) due to rainfall which slightly helped the crops, according to the October edition of Grain Industry of Western Australia (GIWA) report released on Friday October 18.

The Russian Union of Grain Exporters (Rusgrain Union) will start publishing the recommended export prices for wheat, according to a note on the union's official Telegram Messenger channel, seen on Tuesday October 15.

Russia’s Ministry of Agriculture held a meeting with Russian grain exporters on Friday October 11 and supported a push for direct export sales, “bypassing traders and intermediaries from other countries,” the Russian Union of Grain Exporters (Rusgrain Union) said on its official channel on Telegram Messenger on the same day.

Insurance rates for ships out of Ukraine could potentially be raised due to an increase in Russian attacks on Ukrainian deep-sea ports during the week to Friday October 11, which have damaged terminals and vessels, sources told Fastmarkets.

Russia’s wheat export volumes from Black Sea ports totaled 1.1 million tonnes in the week ended Friday October 11, unchanged week on week.

The Russian government has significantly increased its wheat export tax for the October 16-22 period, according to a note published by the country’s agriculture ministry on Friday October 11.

The Turkish government has decided to reduce its corn import tax to 5%, but just for a volume of 1 million tonnes, according to an official document seen by Fastmarkets on Thursday October 10.

A meeting between Russia’s Ministry of Agriculture and the country’s grain exporters is expected to be held on Friday October 11 to discuss potential restrictions on exports, sources told Fastmarkets on Wednesday October 9.

Dry bulk freight rates for Panamax vessels in the Atlantic picked up in the week to Wednesday October 9 amid volatile crude oil prices and limited tonnage availability.

Algeria’s state-backed grain import agency Inter-professional Office of Cereals (OAIC) has purchased up to 480,000 tonnes of milling wheat, likely to be sourced from the Black Sea, in a tender that closed on Wednesday October 9.

Tunisia’s state importer has picked up 125,000 tonnes of optional origin barley in its tender closed on Tuesday October 8, paying $234.84 per tonne CFR on average, sources told Fastmarkets.

Bangladesh's state grain importer, the Directorate General of Food (DGF), has returned to the market after seven months of absence looking for optional origin milling wheat, according to an official document seen by Fastmarkets on Monday October 7.

Algeria’s state-backed grain import agency Inter-professional Office of Cereals (OAIC) has returned to the market looking for optional origin milling wheat for November 1-15 and 16-30 November loading, according to an official document released on Sunday October 6.

The Russian government marginally increased the export taxes for wheat and barley for the week from October 9 to October 15 but reduced the rate for corn, according to a note published by the country’s agriculture ministry on Friday October 4.

Russian wheat exports through Black Sea ports recovered after a two-week decline, with support from Egyptian and Algerian tender coverage, a Fastmarkets analysis showed on Friday October 4.

Australian wheat export volumes went down in August after an increase in July, while barley exports were steady, with continued flow into China, according to monthly data from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) published on Friday October 4.