Russia to cut grain prices for replenishing state stocks

Russia's Agriculture Ministry has proposed cutting grain prices for its restocking programme in the 2018/19 marketing year which starts on July 1, signalling a persistent weak appetite for stock replenishing. The ministry, which has 4.0 million tonnes of grains in state stocks, can buy grain on the domestic market every year in what are known as interventions, but it has not concluded any major purchases in the past 12 months.
It said in a statement on Thursday that it would offer 8,900 roubles ($155) for a tonne of third-class wheat in the domestic market during the 2018/19 year compared with 10,300 roubles in the current programme. The proposal has already been agreed with the Russian anti-monopoly regulator, the ministry added. At the end of last week, domestic prices for third-class wheat, excluding delivery, were at 8,575 roubles in the European part of Russia, down 14 percent from around the same date a year ago.