MOSCOW: Russian Sovecon agriculture consultancy said on Friday it had raised its forecast for Russia's 2021 wheat crop to 77.7 million tonnes from previously expected 76.8 million tonnes as weather conditions have improved in January.

"Heavy snowfall in recent weeks is likely to boost moisture reserves, which were abnormally low after a dry autumn," Sovecon, one of the leading agriculture consultancies in Moscow, said in a note.