Russian grain prices rise after holidays

Russian grain prices rose in the first working week after long new year holidays in most regions except Siberia where there was a price correction, analysts said on Monday. Prices have strengthened in the European part of Russia last week in spite of the recent announcement on the forthcoming start of intervention sales, the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies (IKAR) said in a weekly note.
Feed barley rose 175 roubles ($5.82) to 8,550 roubles per tonne EXW European Russia, while third-grade milling wheat rose 125 roubles to 7,325 roubles per tonne, SovEcon agricultural analysts said in a separate note. In dollar terms, third-grade wheat prices in southern Russia rose to $215 per tonne from $209, fourth-grade wheat to $205 per tonne from $200, feed wheat to $202 from $195, feed barley to $280 from $256, maize to $286 from $271, IKAR said.
Prices in Siberia declined as their previous levels made cereals originating from that region uncompetitive, SovEcon said. SovEcon expects that in the nearest future the government may sell up to 4.5 million tonnes of grain to drought-hit regions at a fixed low price and through intervention tenders, which may push prices down.
Sunseed prices continued to weaken to $674 per tonne from $688, IKAR said. SovEcon said sunseeds fell by 650 roubles to 20,500 roubles per tonne, crude sunoil by 425 roubles to 48,075 roubles per tonne EXW European Russia. IKAR said that in dollar terms, crude sunoil price increased slightly to $1,571 per tonne from $1,545. Sugar prices rose to 36,200 roubles per tonne from 36,000 and to $1,203 per tonne from $1,186, IKAR said.