Ukraine's grain exports halve year on year

Overall grain exports from Ukraine since the start of the 2022-23 marketing year halved on the year, but the resumption of exports through three Black Sea ports could increase grain volumes exported from the country in the coming months.

Ukrainian companies registered around 2.21mn t of grains - wheat, barley and corn - for export since the start of the 2022-23 grain export season (July-June), more than half the 4.61mn t exported over the same period a year ago, customs data show.

Some 599,000t of grains were declared for export in the first 10 days of August, more than a twofold drop from 1.57mn t exported a year ago.

Corn continued to show a good export pace owning to large old-crop stocks, with 346,000t registered for export from Ukraine on 1-10 August, up from 186,000t a year ago. Ukraine's overall corn shipments from the start of the 2022-23 marketing year reached about 1.45mn t, up from 1.15mn t exported over the same period last year.

Overall wheat volumes declared for export since the start of this month amounted to 201,000t, compared with 857,000t a year earlier, with marketing year-to-date wheat exports totalling only 562,000t, down by 1.26mn t on the year.

And barley volumes registered for export on 1-10 August totalled just 50,000t, compared with 524,000t over the same period a year earlier. Cumulative 2022-23 barley exports from Ukraine reached 192,000t, a drastic drop from 1.62mn t exported over the same period a year earlier.

This sharp drop resulted from Ukraine's limited export capacity, coupled with a significant decrease in this year's production because of reduced harvested areas, as well as lower yields.

But Ukrainian grain seaborne exports could accelerate in the coming months thanks to the UN brokered grain corridor deal signed last month, which unblocked three Ukrainian ports - Pivdennyi, Odessa and Chornomorsk (POC). About 375,000t of agricultural products were shipped from Ukraine's POC ports as of 9 August, with a total of 12 vessels - carrying mainly corn - leaving Ukrainian ports since 1 August.

Ukraine aims to export at least 3mn t of agricultural products each month from its POC ports under the grain corridor agreement, according to the country's infrastructure ministry.

By Kristin Yavorska