IKAR in Mass Media

Russian wheat export prices fall for first time since November

03 февраля 2020 года

· Russian FOB prices fall for first time since November
· Sunflower market continues climb
· Russian winter weather remains unusually warm

MOSCOW, Feb 3 (Reuters) - Export prices of Russian wheat fell last week for the first time since November due to strong competition and growing fears over the spread of China's coronavirus, analysts said on Monday.

Export prices had reached 11-month highs earlier in January.

Russian wheat with 12.5% protein content, loaded from Black Sea ports and intended for delivery in February, fell by $0.5 to $230.5 per tonne on a free-on-board (FOB) basis at the end of last week, SovEcon said. Barley rose by $4 to $191 per tonne.

IKAR, another agricultural consultancy in Moscow, pegged wheat at $226 per tonne, down $6.

Russia is the world's largest wheat exporter. It exported 25.7 million tonnes of grain, including 22.1 million tonnes of wheat, between the start of the 2019/20 season on July 1 and Jan. 30, SovEcon said, citing customs data. Total grain exports fell 18% from a year earlier.

"Wheat prices are under pressure due to declining futures and high competition," SovEcon analysts said.

Russia's winter weather remains unusually warm, but conditions look good because the soil is not frozen in the majority of regions and can take in water well, SovEcon said.

Other Russian data provided by SovEcon and IKAR:

Product:	Price at the end of last week:	Change from end of 2019
- Domestic 3rd class wheat, European part of Russia, excludes delivery (SovEcon)	12,450 rbls/t ($195.35)	+275 rbls
- Sunflower seeds (SovEcon)	19,525 rbls/t	+525 rbls
- Domestic sunflower oil (SovEcon)	45,600 rbls/t	+100 rbls
- export sunflower oil (SovEcon)	$730/t	-$30
white sugar, Russia's south (*IKAR*)	$314.1/t	-$13.6