Russian wheat export prices up as shipping difficulties continue

MOSCOW: Russian wheat export prices rose last week as weather conditions continued to seriously hamper shipments from the country’s southern ports, analysts said.

The price of Russian wheat with 12.5percent protein content for free-on-board (FOB) delivery in the second half of March was USD233.0 a metric ton at the end of last week, up USD2 compared to the previous week, said Dmitry Rylko, head of the IKAR consultancy.

Weather conditions significantly limited shipments from Russia’s southern ports in January. In February, difficult weather conditions continue: storms are hampering shipments in the Black Sea, while ice conditions are affecting shipments in the Sea of Azov, where the water is shallow.

Sovecon estimated the price for the same type of Russian wheat at USD231-USD235 a ton FOB, compared with USD230-USD233 at the end of the previous week.

The agency raised its estimate for February wheat exports by 0.2 million tons to 3.3 million tons. Rail carrier Rusagrotrans increased its own estimate by 0.125 million tons to 3.4 million tons last week.