IKAR in Mass and Industry Media

Russia Unlikely to Import Raw Sugar Until Year-End, IKAR Says

Bloomberg, 11.06.10

June 10 (Bloomberg) -- Russia is unlikely to import raw sugar until the end of the year because of higher duties, the Institute for Agricultural Market Studies said.

Import duties in coming months are expected to exceed $200 a metric ton, making shipments uneconomical, the researcher, also known as IKAR, wrote in a report today.

Russia pegs import duty on the raw sweetener to the price traded in New York. The duty rose from $50 a ton in May to $200 in June. It will rise to $239 a ton in July, and is expected to stay at that level in August, IKAR said.

Russia imported 1.8 million tons of raw sugar in the first five months of the year, including 1.4 million tons in May when the duty was at the lowest level, according to the country’s Sugar Producers’ Union.

Refining from domestically grown beet may rise as much as 31 percent to 4.2 million tons as farmers boost plantings, IKAR said. The Sugar Producers’ Union forecasts refining from domestically grown beet will be 4 million tons.

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