EU Grains Mostly Higher, Fresh News Lacking
03/03/15 -- EU grains closed mixed, but mostly a little higher.
At the finish, Mar 15 London wheat was GBP0.25/tonne firmer at GBP117.20/tonne, Mar 15 Paris wheat was EUR0.50/tonne higher at EUR185.25/tonne, Mar 15 Paris corn was down EUR0.50/tonne at EUR147.75/tonne and May 15 Paris rapeseed also fell EUR0.50/tonne to EUR364.75/tonne.
Significant fresh news was once again lacking.
Egypt's GASC bought 110,000 MT of Russian and Ukraine origin wheat in a tender. This was for grain that was already stored in the country on a free on truck basis.
The Ukraine Ag Ministry said that they expect higher winter wheat losses than normal this year, according to Agritel.
UkrAgroConsult said Ukraine exported 2.963 MMT of grain in February, of which 681,000 MT was wheat.
They estimated Ukraine’s 2015 rapeseed production at 1.7 MMT versus 2.2 MMT in 2014.
APK Inform said that Ukraine had exported a record 8.4 MMT of wheat in he Jul14/Jan15 period, a 22% increase on the same period in 2013/14.
Russia also exported a record 18 MMT in the same period, up 35% versus a year previously, they added.
Russia's Ag Ministry said that agricultural lending for the 2015 sowing campaign is down by a third compared to a year ago. That's a very significant amount considering that the vale of the rouble has plummeted in the last 12 months, making the cost of sowing in real terms anywhere between 40-100% higher than a year ago.
Russia only managed to pick up 3,105 MT of grain at today's intervention purchase round.
