Economy Ministry, traders cap corn exports in MY 2020/21

Ukraine's Ministry for Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture and grain traders have limited corn exports from the country in the 2020-2021 marketing year (MY, July 2020 – June 2021) to 24 million tonnes.

That is according to a statement published on the ministry's website on January 25.

The sides also agreed to revise the approved limit of corn allowed for exports after the publication of official statistics on crop production in 2020, if necessary.

Read alsoUkraine world's second-largest grain exporter in 2019/20 MYAt the same time, there is enough corn in Ukraine to cover both domestic demand and export obligations, the ministry's press service said.

"Today, according to reports from the [country's] regions, the projected corn output is 30.3 million tonnes, which is one of the best corn harvests over the years. The Economy Ministry believes that there are no problems with exports of corn to foreign markets or a probable shortage of this crop in the domestic market. To ensure further predictability and stability of the grain market, the ministry has supported the agrarian associations' proposal to ... determine the maximum export volumes at 24 million tonnes," the press service quoted Minister for Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture Ihor Petrashko as saying.

Background

The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) revised upwards its forecast for the corn yield in Ukraine to 29.5 million tonnes, while that of exports to 24 mln tonnes.

Read alsoChina triples purchases of Ukrainian corn in Oct-Dec of MY 2020/21Ukraine's Ministry for Development of Economy, Trade and Agriculture and traders agreed in a memorandum that wheat exports should not exceed 17.5 million tonnes in MY 2020-2021, while those of rye were capped at 16,000 tonnes.