EU 2016/17 wheat exports reach 11.1mn T, 135,000 T this week

PARIS: European Union soft wheat exports in the 2016/17 season had reached 11.13 million tonnes by Dec. 13, up 1 percent from 11.02 million exported by the same period last season, official data showed on Thursday.

In the latest reporting week, the EU exported 135,000 tonnes of soft wheat, on the basis of a revised week-earlier total of 11.00 million tonnes, the data showed.

The EU changed last month its reporting system for grain exports and imports, which are now based on actual export shipments declared to customs services and no longer on licences requested.

Volumes under the new customs-based system are subject to revision in the following weeks, leading to volatility in weekly variations.

EU barley exports so far this season were 1.88 million tonnes, down 65 percent from a year earlier and including 118,000 tonnes in the latest reporting week, the data showed.

In maize, cumulative imports so far in 2016/17 were 4.22 million tonnes, down 19 percent, including a weekly volume of 218,000 tonnes.